


A New Life for Hermione

by Elena78



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-14
Updated: 2013-12-08
Packaged: 2017-12-14 23:19:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 51,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/842582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elena78/pseuds/Elena78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A time after the War, Hermione realises that her life is need of a change...In more ways then one. A birthday party held in her honor, brings an unexpected man from her past back into her life. Is this really the new life she was expecting?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was my first ever attempt at fan fiction. It was written back in 2006, is AU and written just after HBP and my interpretations from it. This really is NOT my best work, but I'm so proud of this story and were I took it. This story has never been completed, so I'm hoping by giving it a new life and a new audience might just push me to get it finished. I hope you all enjoy it.

After the war had finally come to an end, and Harry Potter had freed the world of Lord Voldemort, a calm sense of peace was felt by the Wizard world and the Muggle world. The only war that existed was that of personal growth.

Hermione Granger was a young woman of 20 years of age. She graduated Hogwarts at the top of her class and as Head Girl. She was destined to do many great things. However, after she almost lost her two very best friends during the war, Hermione put aside her destiny and followed her heart for the first time.

Ron Weasley was her heart’s desire for so long that she did not want to pass up on her chance to finally be with him. When she saw Ron in the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts, lying motionless and cuts and bruises all over him, she cried for hours. She had not even noticed how badly Harry had been hurt, all she could think of was Ron.

Hermione laughed at herself now as she thought back on that night. How could she have been so stupid? She had passed up on so many great opportunities to be with Ron, and now, as she looked around the room she was in, she wondered what on earth she was thinking.

In the days after the war, things started to get back to normal. The Ministry was in a mess and gathered up its strength again. Harry and Ginny became an official couple as did Ron and Hermione. Harry and Ron made it into professional Quidditch teams, and as loyal girlfriends, Hermione and Ginny followed the boys around the country supporting the boys in their quest. Ginny was finally happy to be with Harry that she really didn’t care about the amount of travel they did. Hermione, however, cared very much. It was fun for a while, but then Hermione wanted more out of this new world then what was right in front of her.

Tears again came to her eyes as she remembered her last conversation with Ron…

Ron had just come back from practice and the Hotel they were staying at, although Immaculate, bored Hermione to pieces.

“Hermione, I’m back.” Ron yelled out as he entered their room.

“I’m in the kitchen.” Hermione yelled back.

Ron made his way to the kitchen and his face suddenly went pale. “Oh no, what have I done now?” He muttered to himself.

Hermione was cooking a feast. They were not expecting anyone that he knew of. Harry and Ginny were going out for dinner and Ron knew that when Hermione was angry or upset about something, she cooked.  
“Dinner will be served in about 5 minutes, so wash yourself up and sit down at the table.” Hermione said in her usual bossy tone.

“Okay.” Ron replied and did as she asked.

As they sat down to dinner, Ron waited. He knew better than to ask what was wrong. Just as he was about to take his first mouth full of food, Hermione finally spoke.

“Ron, I have made a decision about something and I need you to just listen, can you do that?”

“Um, sure. What’s up?” Ron said, and started eating.

“I’m not happy here Ron, I’m not happy anywhere. We travel so much and I hardly get to see you and we haven’t had a decent conversation in weeks. Most nights I sleep alone and when you do manage to climb into bed with me, you're too tired to...” Hermione blushed and tried to find the right words without being tasteless. "To be intimate with me.” Hermione could feel the tears start to fall. “I want to go back home after the season finishes, get a job, a house and settle. Will you be willing to do that for me?” She finally braved a look at Ron.

Ron sat there, not knowing what to say. He loved his life right now. Finally free from the Burrow, traveling the country and playing the one sport he loves the most and getting paid to do so. He loved Hermione, but he wasn’t sure he was ready to give up his life as he knew it right now.

Pushing aside his barely touched meal, he looked across the table at Hermione. “You know I love you, but I’m not ready for that just yet. Harry and I have to practice with the best players if we want to play in the World Cup. The teams get selected in three months. I can’t leave now.” Ron hoped Hermione would understand.

“Well then, that’s that.” Hermione replied and Ron smiled and nodded and went to start to eat again, but noticed Hermione leaving the table.

“Hey, are you not eating?” Ron asked.

“No, I’m leaving.” Hermione responded heading to their room to pack.

“Leaving?” Ron asked as he too got up and followed Hermione into their bedroom.

“Yes, leaving Ron, I told you what I wanted and it’s not what you want. We have grown apart instead of together. Can’t you see that?” She looked at Ron and tried to find some kind of understanding in his eyes, but there was none. She could see his face turn red and his face tense up in anger.

“There is nothing to see. Obviously you have made up your mind. Do what you like.” Ron said and stormed out of the room. Hermione heard him curse under his breath, heard him rummaging for his keys and finally heard the door slam behind him as he left.

Hermione sat down on their bed, and cried. She packed her belongings, wrote a letter to Harry and Ginny and left.


	2. A Fresh Start

Hermione was standing by her bedroom window, looking out over the beautiful country side. It has been three months since the night she left Ron. Once she had returned home, her mother could see her daughter was in no state to try and find a job and get on with her life. She sent her daughter to a retreat in the country, a place to find peace and tranquillity.

As Hermione stared out the window, she couldn’t believe she was thinking about Ron again. He had not tried to contact her at all. Ginny had sent her a few letters and postcards. At least she knew that Harry and Ginny understood. 

“Hermione dear, are you in there?” A voice came out behind Hermione’s door, breaking her thoughts.

“Oh, yes Mrs Tally, please come in.” Hermione replied, quickly wiping away tears that she didn’t know she had and turning toward where Mrs Tally had appeared.

“Your taxi is here, dear. Now I have arranged an apartment for you in London. Your belongings are already there and here are a few names and numbers of people I know who may be able to help you with a job.” Mrs Tally handed Hermione a piece of paper and a set of keys for her apartment.

“Oh, thank you so much. Thank you for everything you have done for me.” Hermione said as she hugged Mrs Tally.

“Off you go now, dear.” Mrs Tally said, breaking the hug and Hermione could have sworn she saw a tear in Mrs Tally’s eyes, but before she could say anything more, she found herself being shooed out and into the awaiting taxi.

The drive to London didn’t take that long and Hermione found herself feeling excited about the next journey she was about to experience. The break she had taken was relaxing and it did allow her to pull herself together and focus on what she needed to do. As the taxi pulled up out front of her new home, Hermione took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders, ready to face her new life. She paid her fair and stepped out of the taxi.

The apartment she now called home was small, but nice. Mrs Tally owned the building she lived in and arranged for Hermione to stay here till she got back on her feet. She saw that her luggage was in her room, and a note lay on top of one of her bags.

_Hermione,_

_I have filled the fridge with food so you need not worry about going out to shop. I have also arranged a subscription to The Daily Prophet so you can catch up on what’s been going on. Your first edition should arrive tomorrow._

_Mrs Tally_

Hermione smiled to herself as she finished reading the letter and started to unpack. After about two hours of unpacking and getting settled in, she headed for the shower. As she emptied her pockets, she found the piece of paper that Mrs Tally had given her with the names of people to help her find a job. She scanned the names and one of them made her pause and smile. Luna Lovegood. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.

Luna now owned and ran The Quibbler. Her father had died in the war and she had picked up right where her father left off. Luna was a bit on the strange side, but a lovely girl. Hermione had arranged an appointment to see her and it was set for 9am.

The Quibbler was a magazine known to most people as just another tabloid magazine. As Hermione arrived for her appointment, Luna was already waiting for her.

“Hermione, how lovely to see you. Please come in my office and take a seat.” Luna greeted Hermione before she had a chance to speak. As they entered the office, Hermione seated herself down and waited for Luna. 

“Well, I must say, I’m quite surprised to hear that you wanted to work here. I thought you’d have some wonderful career. Not that working here isn’t great. You know what I mean. Anyway, I expect you would be okay if I offered you to be my assistant? Nobody really wants the job as they think my ideas are just _too_ out there. I mean, who knew that after the war, those damn vampires would rise again and try to raise some kind of vampire rebellion? But I got the scoop in time to see them dusted and defeated. I ran the issue and the magazine has been selling like hot cakes ever since.” Luna rattled off at a hundred miles an hour and all Hermione could do was nod or say the occasional “Ah ha” as she couldn’t get a word in edge wise.

“So, Hermione, tell me what’s been going on in your life?” Luna finally stopped talking and Hermione was surprised with the question that seemed to come out of nowhere.

“Ah, well…” Hermione gave Luna a very short, edited, version of her relationship with Ron and the breakup and the move and now being here.

“Sorry to hear about Ron, I noticed that your 21st birthday is soon to come. Do you have any plans?” Luna asked. Again, Hermione was taken aback with Luna.

“Um, no, I hadn’t really thought of it.” Replied Hermione.

‘Well then, I shall host you a birthday party. What better way for you to catch up with those of importance and get back into the swing of things.” Luna smiled and again started rattling off about plans and a party.

“Luna!” Hermione shouted to get Luna to stop talking. “Honestly, it’s not necessary for a party; I just really want to start working, if you don’t mind.”

“Well of course it’s necessary, Hermione. You’ve been gone a while and things have changed. The Ministry works differently now and so many people died in the war, as you know, leaving the world in new hands. You need to meet people and be reintroduced to our society.” Luna sat back in her chair waiting for Hermione to think about what she had just said. Hermione let out a sigh and shrugged.

“Okay.” Was all that she could say.

“Excellent. You’re hired and you start tomorrow. I must end this here and start planning for this party. I shall see you tomorrow at 6am.”


	3. The Party

A few weeks had gone by and surprisingly, Hermione was enjoying her new job. She was learning about the magazine business, getting editors skills, business management skills and was able to catch up on a lot of things she missed while she was away.

Luna was still going full steam ahead with this party that Hermione was starting to dread. As she checked her calendar, she was surprised that the party was in three days.

“Hermione, there you are. I have arranged for you to meet with Lady Sienna. She owns a boutique in Diagon Alley, and she will fit you with a dress for the party. No need to pay, it’s my gift to you.” Luna said as she bumped into Hermione.

“Oh Luna, you’ve done so much for me already, I…” Hermione began to protest.

“It’s already done. Now, you finish up at four this afternoon, then you go straight to Diagon Alley, okay?”

“Okay.” Replied Hermione.

Her life was such a whirlwind lately. She received an owl a week ago from Ginny saying that she will be at the party with Harry, but Ron was busy and wouldn’t be able to make it. That didn’t surprise her.  
The dress she was fitted for, fit her like a glove. As Hermione slipped into her dress the night of her birthday party, she couldn’t help but feel a bit of excitement. She was anxious though to find out who was actually going to be attending. Luna did mention some names, but as usual, she was talking in such a rush that Hermione didn’t really hear any of the names that Luna had mentioned.

A knock came at her door, bringing Hermione out of her thoughts and to her surprise, there stood Harry and Ginny.

“Oh my goodness, you look fantastic Hermione.” Ginny squealed with excitement as she gave Hermione a hug.

"Thanks Ginny, so do you.” Hermione replied in all honesty. “Oh, Harry, it’s so good to see you.” Hermione said as she gave Harry a hug too.

“It’s good to see you too, Hermione. I’ve missed you.” Harry said as he held onto Hermione a bit longer then needed. “I’m so sorry that we have not been to visit and talk with you sooner.”

“That’s okay. You’re both here now.” Hermione said as she smiled at them both.

“Oh, here,” Ginny said as she passed a small box to Hermione. “Happy Birthday. We wanted you to have this now before we go to the party.”

Hermione took the box and opened it. Inside was a silver necklace with a heart shaped locket hanging off it. “Oh, it's beautiful. Thank you both so much.” Hermione handed the necklace to Ginny so she could put it on for her.

“Well, shall we go?” Asked Harry.

“Yes, we shall.” Said Ginny and took Hermione by the arm and lead her out.

As they arrived at the Grand Hotel, Hermione couldn’t believe her eyes. She didn’t realise that the Grand Hotel was actually very grand indeed. The building was huge with gold trimming around sandstone bricks. Inside was just as grand. A huge lobby greeted them as the trio walked inside. Way up on the ceiling was a glorious chandelier, the walls were decorated with a gold jacquard type of wallpaper and the marble floor was just exquisite.

As they entered the Ballroom, Hermione caught her breath. The room was huge and just as breathtaking as the lobby. Luna spotted her as soon as she stepped inside and came to stand beside her.

“Ladies and Gentleman, may I introduce the guest of honour, Hermione Granger on her twenty-first Birthday. Happy Birthday, Hermione.” Luna announced.

Hermione was over whelmed as she took notice for the first time of the fact that this huge room was full of people, all wishing her a happy birthday. Luna took Hermione by the arm and starting to move off with her and introducing her to person after person. She looked over her shoulder and waved to Harry and Ginny. They waved back and moved off into the crowd.

After what seemed like an eternity of meeting people and shaking hands, Hermione finally excused herself to visit the ladies room. As she left Luna, she did a quick scan of the room, found an exit, and headed for it. On her way, she found a waiter with glasses of Champaign on his tray. She took two glasses and headed for her exit.

Once she stepped through the door, Hermione found herself on a balcony. She gulped down one glass of Champaign and started to sip the second glass. She walked over to the railing and looked over the busy streets of London. Lost in her own thoughts, Hermione was oblivious to the fact that there was someone else on the balcony watching her.


	4. A Blast from the Past

He was most surprised to receive the invitation for Hermione’s party. He had not seen her since that fateful night in their sixth year at Hogwarts. After that night he had gone into hiding. He had failed the Dark Lord and knew that he would be killed if he was to return.

He shook his head to forget those days and returned his focus on the invitation. He smiled to himself as he thought of Granger. They had hated each other so much. Would she be just as surprised to see him as he was to get the invitation? He wondered. 

“I guess I’ll find out soon enough.” He said to himself as he replied to the RSVP.

He arrived at the party early and wanted to make sure he was there before Hermione arrived. He made small talk with a few people as he knew he was still being watched carefully. He still was not trusted; he was still considered a Death Eater even though he was cleared by the Ministry.

He didn’t notice her arrival, but once Luna had made her announcement, he could hear everyone wish Hermione a happy birthday, but all he could do was drink in her beauty. For some reason she had managed to make him catch his breath, made his heart beat faster, and what was that? He asked himself. Desire? Do I feel desire for this woman? How can that possibly be after only seeing her for a minute?

As shocked as he was, he saw Luna drag her away and started to introduce her to the guests. Hermione waved at someone over her shoulder and that’s when he noticed Potter and Weasley. Though, there was no Ron, just his sister, Ginny. He knew Potter was with someone, he didn’t realise it was Ginny though. He had met with Potter on a few occasions, Ministry business. Though Potter was not a friend, he was not an enemy either. He understands Potter now, just as Potter has a mutual understanding of him.

As Luna swept Hermione across the room, he kept moving too. He did not want to meet her just yet. He watched her, and picked up on her emotions and reactions. She was nervous; anybody could see that, a bit overwhelmed even. He watched her drink glass after glass of Champaign, probably to calm her nerves, he thought.

As he saw Hermione excuse herself and walk outside, he followed. He stayed a few meters away and hid in the shadows. He needed to steady himself before he approached her. He caught his breath again as he studied her. Her hair was swept up on her head with just a few tendrils of curls hanging down here and there. The dress she was wearing made her look stunning. The dress was a dark purple colour, thin straps that came down from her shoulders and came to a heart shaped front, which accentuated her bust. The dress just seemed to flow down from under the bust to her ankles showing every curve along the way. As Hermione moved to the railing, he noticed the split in the dress that revealed nice smooth looking legs. 

Again he drank in her beauty and wondered why he had not noticed this in her before. Why had he hated her? Pureblood or Mudblood, how could he have hated such a beautiful creature? It was time to reveal himself to her now. He needed to be closer to her. He started to approach her, smiling as he knew she had no idea he was there.

“Long time no see, Granger. Happy Birthday by the way.” He said to Hermione as he stood beside her on the balcony.

Hermione jumped as she heard someone speak to her, not aware that anyone was out on the balcony with her.

“Oh, thank…..” she started to reply as she turned to the person who was talking to her, but sopped when she looked up and saw the most gorgeous steel grey eyes she had ever seen. 

Those eyes were framed by blonde hair that was drooping into those eyes. She watched him push his hair back out of his eyes and saw that he had quite nice hands. He smiled at her watching him, taking in his features as if seeing him for the very first time. She saw him smile at her and noticed his lips, they were beautiful, kissable.

Hermione took a step back and smiled at this stranger, as she did, she remembered how he had greeted her. “Granger” she thought, only one person has ever called me by my surname. As realisation took over her, and she had to blink a few times to really see who was standing in front of her.

“Draco Malfoy?” Hermione asked, somewhat surprised, but shocked.


	5. Draco's Return

“The one and only!” Draco replied as he took Hermione’s right hand in his and placed a kiss on the back of her hand.

Hermione gasped softly and for an instant, she felt a warm tingling sensation flow through her as his lips lightly pressed against her hand. Once she regained her composure she snatched her hand from him. “What are you doing here?” Hermione asked.

“I was invited.” Draco said in amusement. “I must say, you look absolutely stunning.” There was no amusement in Draco’s voice now as he roamed Hermione’s body from head to toe and back again. Still smiling, he locked his eyes with hers.

Hermione slightly blushed, but then all the memories from the past came rushing back to her. She stood there just staring at him, unable to say anything. Just staring into those eyes of his, and noticing that there was no hate there. Why was he being nice to her? Hermione thought to herself. Why was he here? He hates me, doesn’t he?

Draco could see the confusion in her eyes. “You know,” he began to say, “Its rude to just stare at your guests. Are you enjoying your party? Luna has a knack for these things.” 

“I…I was, until now.” Hermione stammered. Her head was swirling from confusion, perhaps from the Champaign too. “I have to go back now.” She needed to escape from those eyes, she started to turn away and head back to the party.

“Hermione, wait.” Draco said and grabbed her hand to stop her. “Don’t go just yet.”

Again she snatched her hand from him, as she looked him in the eyes, this time with more strength and conviction. “Don’t touch me, Malfoy. And stay away from me.” With that she turned back around again and tried to head back into the party. 

Harry and Ginny went in search of Hermione; they had not seen her in a while and wanted to spend a bit more time with her before they had to leave. They finally found her and caught the last bit of the conversation she was having with Draco.

Hermione was in such a rush, that she did not see Harry and Ginny and near collided with them.

“Are you okay Hermione?” Harry asked.

“Oh, yes. I was just heading back in.” Hermione said and saw that Harry and Ginny were looking past her to Draco who was still standing behind her.

“Hello again, Harry.” Draco stepped forward and held out his hand. 

Hermione watched them as if she was in a nightmare. What is going on here? She thought, still confused with this whole situation.

“Hello, Draco. I wasn’t aware that you would be attending tonight?” Harry asked as he shook his hand.

“Yes, well, I have to admit that I was surprised to receive the invitation, but Luna is not one to leave anyone out.” He replied. “Well, I think that perhaps I should head back in and leave you two with the birthday girl.” Draco smiled at Hermione again. God she wished he wouldn’t do that.

“Ginny, you look lovely.” Draco said, and then he walked back into the party and was lost in a sea of people.

Hermione was still shocked. “Since when was everyone okay with Draco Malfoy?” she didn’t realise that she had spoken her thoughts out loud. 

“Draco isn’t the same person he was back in Hogwarts, Hermione.” Ginny said softly. Hermione’s jaw dropped and she looked at her best friend with wide eyes. 

“I don’t care who he is. I never liked him then and I see no reason to start liking him now.” She piped up. “And as for you,” she turned to speak to Harry. “When did you two become so chummy?”

“Now is not the time to talk about this, Hermione. Let’s just head back into the party and enjoy what’s left of the night.” Harry said.

“Fine.” Hermione said and headed back into the party. She walked straight past her two friends and kept going. As she made her way through the crowd, she found herself heading for the buffet table. Hermione surveyed the food and decided that now was a good a time as any to eat. 

“Hermione, where did you disappear off to?” Luna had just spotted her Guest of Honour and made her way over to her. “I have been looking all over for you. The new Minister of Magic is here and I thought you’d want to meet him.”

“Actually Luna, I was more interested as to why Draco Malfoy was here. Why would you invite that evil pathetic excuse of a person here?” Hermione was fuming now.

“Oh well, Hermione, Draco was missing for years. Then one day, out of the blue, he was back. It was about six months ago now I think.” Luna was saying. “Yes, about six months ago. Draco just appeared. No-one knows where he was and he’s not saying, mind you. He definitely has changed for the better. I have heard on the grape vine that he has voluntarily turned over all his fathers belongings to the Ministry. He had hoped that maybe they may find some insight as to the workings of the Death Eaters. His parents died in the war, you know?” Luna looked at Hermione and saw no recognition in her eyes. “Hermione, you really _have_ lost touch with what’s been going on, haven’t you?”

~~*~~

Hermione was so glad to be home. Harry and Ginny were spending the night with her, and as she let them all back into her apartment, she flopped herself down on her sofa, closed her eyes and let out a sigh. 

“Big night, huh?” Ginny said as she sat down beside Hermione.

“Yep.” Replied Hermione without opening her eyes.

“Anyone for a cup of coffee?” Harry asked.

“That is the best idea I have heard all night.” Hermione said.

The rest of the night, Hermione, Ginny and Harry sat up and talked and laughed and Hermione let the party drift from her mind as she enjoyed the company of her friends.

~~*~~

Draco had left the party after his encounter with Hermione. As he stepped into his house and looked around, he was thankful for the silence that greeted him. He made his way to his bedroom where he got himself ready for bed.

Once he was under the comfort of his bed covers he allowed himself to think of her. Hermione was a woman now, no longer the girl he remembered from Hogwarts. He tried to remember exactly what he hated about her back then. She was Muggle born and a friend of Harry’s. But was that it? Were they the only reasons why he had hated her?

As he pondered over these questions, he could hear a faint whisper in the back of his mind, his father’s voice… _”It was not meant to be this way Draco, it was not meant to be this way.”_ He shook his head to clear it of his father. He did not want to be reminded of him now.

As he closed his eyes and thought of Miss Granger again, he smiled to himself. “I don’t know why, but I’ll make you see who I really am.” He said to himself before he fell asleep.


	6. Harry and Draco's Understanding

Hermione woke up later than normal. She could hear voices coming from her kitchen, the smell of coffee and bacon floated in the air. She got out of bed and headed for the kitchen.

Ginny and Harry were both there, smiling and talking lightly with each other. Hermione smiled at her two best friends, they were perfect for each other. That’s when she saw a glimmer, something sparkled at her. She went in search of what it could be with her eyes, and then as Ginny was passing something to Harry she saw it. 

“Ginny Weasley, why didn’t you tell me?” Hermione squealed in excitement as she ran over to her best friend and swooped up the finger that held a rather expensive looking engagement ring.

Harry and Ginny both jumped as they heard their friend squealing. Ginny smiled and Harry was beaming as Hermione was examining the ring.

“Oh, it only happened this morning.” Ginny replied. “I was sipping my coffee and reading the Daily Prophet, when Harry asked if I would marry him.” She smiled. “I looked over the top of the newspaper, shocked I might add, and there he sat, smiling at me with the ring held out in his hand.” Ginny said as she started to get all teary. “So naturally, I said yes.”

“I’m so happy for you both.” Hermione hugged both her friends.

“Well, who’s for some breakfast?” Harry said as he dished out the food for the three of them. 

They sat in silence for a while as they ate, but then Harry and Ginny started talking about wedding plans and dates. Hermione tuned out and was lost in her own thoughts.

“Oh, and of course Ron will be the best man, and Hermione will be my maid of honour, won’t you?" Ginny asked, and both Ginny and Harry looked at Hermione. They could see a sadness yet painful expression on her face. “Hermione, are you okay? I’m sorry if I said something wrong. I know you and Ron aren’t…” Ginny was cut off by Hermione.

“Forget about Ron. Tell me about Malfoy.” Hermione stated and looked at her two friends.

“What about him?” Harry responded.

“Tell me about him. Why is it all of a sudden that he’s back and no-one seems to care about what happened to Dumbledore? Has everyone forgotten that Malfoy is the reason why Dumbledore is dead?” Hermione could no longer contain her anger.

“No-one has forgotten, Hermione,” Harry said after a while. “But your wrong about Malfoy, it’s not his fault Dumbledore died. Voldemort gave the order, it was his fault.”

Hermione’s jaw dropped in shock. “It was Malfoy who…”

“No, Hermione.” Harry cut her off, “Voldemort gave the orders. Malfoy was just obeying.”

“I don’t understand, Harry.” Hermione was shaking her head at a loss for words. _Has everyone gone mad?_ She thought.

Harry let out a heavy sigh. “Then let me clear it up for you.” Harry said and told Hermione what he knew. “A few weeks after the war ended, I was approached from the New Minister, Derrick Davidson. He had asked if I could still report in with the Ministry along with whoever was left in the Order. I agreed. Meetings were only ever brief and held once a month.”

“Then about six months ago, the night you left Ron actually, I received an urgent call to the Ministry. Ginny and I left at once. When we arrived, Malfoy was there. He had turned himself over and was being interviewed by the Minister. None of us knew what was being said. No hearing was scheduled, no trial, hell, he wasn’t even arrested. I was so angry. I wanted him to pay.” Harry was looking at Hermione and she could see the emotions wash over him, Harry continued.

“The Minister had decided to interview him privately and make a decision after he heard what Malfoy had to say. After what seemed like hours, the Minister and Malfoy emerged. The Minister declared that Malfoy was innocent of all charges and that Malfoy had voluntarily handed over his fathers estate to the Ministry.” 

“I was asked to do the paperwork for Malfoy as the other Members of the Order arranged for the raid on Malfoy’s estate. I was angry and upset. I didn’t understand why Malfoy wasn’t charged. Malfoy was sitting opposite me while I arranged the release papers and the handover of the estate, when Malfoy spoke to me."

_“You know my parents died.” Draco asked somewhat sadly._

_“Yes.” Harry said and Draco could hear the hate in his voice._

_“I wasn’t there Harry, please, did you see them? Did you see them at all?” Draco asked pleadingly. Harry could see the anguish on Draco’s face and hear it in his voice._

_“No.” Harry said somewhat less angry. “I was too busy trying to kill Voldemort.”_

_“I understand now, Harry. About your parents. I understand. I know this doesn’t mean much now, but I am sorry for what I have done and I want to thank you. You have ended a war that should never have happened. It wasn’t meant to be this way.” Draco told Harry._

_“I...Ah…” Harry stammered. He studied Draco hard. He was shocked by the apology and more about his parents. But he could see that Malfoy was sincere. Then it dawned on Harry. Draco’s parents were killed and he wasn’t there. He didn’t know how they died, or where they were or anything. He wasn’t there to even say goodbye._

_Harry just simply nodded at Draco, a gesture to say that Harry understood and accepted his apology. Draco nodded back in confirmation, signed what he needed to sign, and left._

Harry came back to the present. “Since that night, I have only ever seen Draco a few times. We’ve been civil. Not friends, but not enemies either. I don’t fully know what happened to him, Hermione. I just know he’s not the same as he was back in school.” Harry finished with a sad look in his eye. Ginny hugged him as she saw the pain he was feeling.

Hermione again was at a loss. “So, no-one but the Minister and Malfoy know the truth?” She asked, and Harry shrugged and nodded at her. She let out a sigh, feeling defeated. “Why didn’t you tell me about you reporting to the Ministry? Does Ron know? How long did you know Ginny?" Hermione was asking, looking at her two friends to understand.

“I only found out about Harry still working for the Ministry the night Draco appeared.” Ginny said.

“Ron doesn’t know and I never told you because there wasn’t much to tell. The Ministry still needs to recover and gather information about who died and who survived and if the remaining Death Eaters are caught and punished. There are just loose ends to tie up.” Harry stated. “You and Ron were so happy to start off with, and then I could see that your relationship was a bit shaky and I didn’t want to bore you with information that really didn’t mean anything.”

“The fact that Draco Malfoy reappeared and was not charged, but cleared is NOT information that doesn’t mean anything. Harry, he knows something.” Hermione said suspiciously. 

“No, Hermione. He doesn’t. Didn’t you hear what I said? He’s turned over everything to the Ministry. If anything, the Ministry knows more about the workings of Lucius Malfoy then what Draco does.”

Again, Hermione was left at a loss. There was still more to Draco Malfoy and for some reason she needed to know what it was. A short while later, Harry and Ginny were ready to leave.

“We’re heading for the Burrow to tell Mum and Dad about our news.” Ginny beamed. Hermione grinned at her friends, giving them both a hug before they left.

“I’ll send you an owl once we settle back in the Burrow.” Ginny said, and as she hugged Hermione again, she whispered in her friends’ ear. “Relax about Draco. He really isn’t that bad anymore.” Ginny pulled back and smiled. Hermione just shrugged at her friend then said her goodbyes.


	7. Owls, Letters, and Roses.

Hermione was sitting at her desk at work, staring down at a letter and lost in her own thoughts. The last couple of weeks since the party have been insane. Owls had been swooping around her every day for over a week, with letters dropping into her hands. The first came not long after Harry and Ginny had left for the Burrow. She heard the scrapping on her window and saw the owl there. 

Draco had been asking her to dinner. She received at least two or three owls per day asking her the same thing. With every letter, her answer was the same, a simple “No.” Hermione was quite surprised when she received a letter that was not from Draco.

_Hermione,_

_Mother is driving me insane. She is so happy and excited about Harry and me that she has not stopped singing these last two weeks. Harry and I have permanently moved back now. We are staying at the Burrow for a while then moving to London. Ron was upset, but he will live. He is doing okay, a bit lost after you left him, but he seems right now._

_So how has everything been? Seen Draco yet?_

_Ginny_

Why would Ginny ask about Draco? Hermione wondered as she finished the letter. She had to admit to herself though; Draco was never far from her thoughts. If she was not puzzled by his sudden appearance, she was thinking about his eyes, and his lips. Oh how she wanted to taste those lips of his. As always, she’d blush and shake the thought out her head and mentally scorn herself for thinking such things.

Then mid last week, as she arrived to work, there on her desk sat a dozen long stemmed red roses and a note. Hermione smiled as she picked up one of the roses to smell is beautiful aroma. As she laid the rose, back down she picked up the note and opened it up.

_Hermione,_

_A dozen roses for you, each holding a reason as to why you should accept my offer and allow me to take you to dinner._

_Please say yes._

_Draco_

Hermione looked back down at the roses, and sure enough, there on each stem was a piece of parchment. She picked up one and read the note:

 _“I think you’re beautiful."_ It read. Hermione gasped and blushed. He thinks I’m beautiful? She wondered as she went through each reason.

 _“I am great company.” “I guarantee to make you laugh.” “I am devastatingly handsome.”_ Hermione chuckled to herself at this one but kept on reading. _“I won’t give up.” “I promise to be a gentleman.” “I know you want to.” “I want you to.” “You have the most wonderful pair of legs that I can sweep across a dance floor. Yes, I can dance.”_ Hermione blushed at this one, briefly wondering what it would feel like to be in his arms. _“I’m terribly attracted to you.” “You are terribly attracted to me.”_ With these last two statements, Hermione had to agree that she was attracted to him, but why was he attracted to her? The last one read, _“I’m Sorry.”_

Hermione wondered what he was apologising for? She finally sat down and gazed at the roses. She felt flattered and intrigued, but was that enough to go out on a date with someone she considered “The Devil”?

“Oh, for goodness sake, Hermione. Tell the man yes and get it over with!” Luna exclaimed. Hermione jumped when she heard Luna’s voice, breaking her out of her thoughts.

“Luna! How long have you been standing there?” Hermione asked.

“Long enough. Just go out with him.” Luna replied as she walked back into her office.

Hermione sighed. She was confused and although she wanted to, something was holding her back. She took a piece of parchment out and instead of her usual response, this time she wrote:

_Draco_

_Thank you for the roses, they are beautiful. I am flattered; however, I must decline your request again. Although, out of curiosity, what exactly are you sorry for? The fact that you treated me and my friends like crap for six years? The fact that you’re the reason why Dumbledore is dead? The fact that you’re nothing but pure evil?_

_Everyone else may be fooled by you; however, I have not forgotten the past._

_Now, please, leave me alone._

_Hermione_

She sighed as she was brought back to the present day. She thought that he had finally gotten the point as she had not heard from him a few days, but just when she thought that she wouldn’t ever hear from Draco again, she had received another letter this morning.

Hermione was in the shower, humming a song she had heard on the radio. As she started to wash her hair, something swooped over hear head, hooting and shrieking. Hermione screamed in fright as she looked up and saw two large wings flapping around her head. Hermione lost her footing and slipped over in her shower, she grabbed onto her shower curtain for support, but all she managed to do was pull it down with her as she fell with a thud on the shower floor.

Hermione could feel pain jolt up her left side and she slowly turned herself around into a sitting position. She looked over to the counter and perched on top was an owl with a letter tied to its leg. Hermione cursed as she stood up and held the shower curtain over her naked body.

“You could have at least waited till I was out of the shower!” She said angrily at the owl. The owl hooted softly and held its leg out for her to take the letter.

_Hermione,_

_This is my last effort. Please, have dinner with me?_

_Draco_

Hermione sighed as she finished reading the letter. The owl hooted at her and she said, “I have no reply for now, so you can go.” 

The owl flew away and Hermione stared at the letter again. She had forgotten that she was in the middle of washing her hair when the owl had flown in, and at that moment, she felt soap drip into her eyes, stinging them. She cursed again as she jumped back under the water to wash away the soap. Once she did though, she let out yelp and backed away from the water, as it had turned cold.

“Damn you, Draco Malfoy. You really are evil!” She cursed again.

Hermione stared at her roses again, but she couldn’t help but feel a little sad inside. They were drooping and the petals were drying out and a few had already fallen off onto the desk. They look how I feel, she thought.

~~*~~

Draco was looking out of his window in his office at the Ministry. The last letter he received from Hermione had hurt him. He knew he would have to face the truth about the past at some point, but not now.   
He was so lost in his thoughts, that he hadn’t noticed Harry standing at the entrance to his office. Harry looked at Draco and shook his head. He had no idea why Draco has been obsessed with Hermione, but he could see that it was bothering him.

“Draco?” Harry asked, startling Draco from his thoughts. Draco turned around and saw Harry standing by the door, as he nodded to him in greeting. Harry wasn’t sure why, but the words left his mouth before he could really think. “Give Hermione time. She’ll come around eventually. The last few years have been difficult for her and she lost her focus."

Draco looked at Harry, surprised by the information. “Well, I think I might grab a bite to eat. Was there something else Harry?” Draco asked.

“Er...Yes.” Harry replied. “I thought you may like to read over this.” Harry said as he passed a file over to Draco then left his office.

Draco dropped the file on his desk, grabbed his coat and walked out of his office. He couldn’t concentrate on business right now. Hermione’s last letter was annoying him. He had to make things right, he thought as he realised where he was going. Draco looked around him and noticed that he was on his way to the Quibbler. 

_“Things were not meant to be this way, Draco. Things were not meant to be this way.”_ He heard his fathers words in his mind again. Draco smiled to himself as he entered the Offices of The Quibbler.


	8. A Kiss Seals the Deal for a Date with The Devil

Luna sighed as she read over Hermione’s last report; there is a 6pm deadline and she couldn’t publish this gibberish! Luna walked over to where Hermione’s desk was, and looked at Hermione with concern.

“Miss Granger, I swear, you're becoming more pathetic every day.” Luna began. “How am I supposed to publish this?” Luna was waving Hermione’s report in the air.

“What?” Replied Hermione as she was finally snapped back to reality. “What’s wrong with my report?”

“What’s wrong? _WHAT’S WRONG_?” Luna shouted, “I’ll tell you what’s wrong,” Luna carried on as she looked at the report and began to read it out. Hermione had noticed that the whole office had stopped to watch what was taking place.

“The Ministry of Magic Muggle Peace Treaty Conference, By Hermione Granger. On October 3, the Ministry of Magic will meet with the Prime Minister and other Muggle officials to conduct the next phase of the Peace Treaty. Heading the Peace talks...” Luna stopped and looked at Hermione, “Are you listening?” She asked

“Yes.” Replied Hermione, unsure of what Luna was trying to get at.

“Heading the Peace talks will be none other than one Mr. Draco Malfoy, who has extremely nice hands. Mr. Malfoy will be speaking on behalf of the Ministry, must pay a lot of attention to those luscious lips of his.” Luna looked back up at Hermione. “Need I carry on?” Luna asked and heard a few people snigger.

“I did **_NOT_** write that!” Hermione said as she stood up and snatched the report off Luna and read it for herself. No doubt, Luna was right and Hermione blushed with embarrassment. Not able to speak, Hermione screwed up the report and threw it away.

“Hermione, I’ve told you before, speak to Draco. Go and find out what you need to. I need you back to normal, because right now you’re making me go insane!” Luna exclaimed.

“I don’t think I can.”

“Yes, you...” Luna drifted off as she could her whispers and murmurs from around the office. “Well, well, speak of the Devil.” Luna smiled as she saw Draco approaching them.

“What?” Hermione followed Luna’s gaze, and sure enough, there he was.

“Good afternoon, Ladies.” Draco greeted them as he came to stand beside Hermione. “Luna, would you mind if I had a quick word with Hermione?”

“No, not at all.” Replied Luna, smiling at Draco, and he could hear the amusement in her voice. Luna turned to head back into her office, but never went in. Instead, she hung by the entrance so she could hear what was being said.

“Draco, I’m rather busy.” Hermione began to say.

“I’m not leaving here until you agree to go out with me tonight for dinner.” Draco said

“Excuse me? What makes you think I want to be anywhere near you?” Hermione could feel her anger start to surface and finally looked up at him and locked her eyes with his. As soon as their eyes locked, Hermione could feel herself falling into them and knew that was a bad thing.

“Because of your last letter.” Draco said in hushed tones. “Because you asked me certain questions that you want to know the answers to. The only way that’s going to happen is if you talk to me; just you and me.” He finished and smiled at her.

_Damn him and that smile_. Hermione thought to herself. _Oh, and those lips_. Hermione closed her eyes for a brief moment before she spoke.

“For the last time, I do not want to have dinner with you.” She said although her voice was shaky, and Draco knew it.

“Yes you do.” He said.

“No I don’t.”

“Yes you do!” Draco replied with a slight laugh.

“What makes you think that?” Hermione asked

“Because of this.” Draco said as he lifted Hermione’s chin up slightly and leaned down and softly pressed his lips to hers.

Hermione gasped slightly but did not move away. Instead, she allowed her eyes to close and began to kiss him back. The kiss was soft and gentle, but the moment Hermione allowed herself to relax into the kiss, that’s when she felt it.

A jolt of energy surged through her body awakening every nerve she had, opening up her senses and a warm, tender feeling overcame her. Every pair of eyes that were in the office were on the kissing couple. Hermione could hear a lot of “Oooh’s” and "Ahhh’s” and it snapped her back to reality, and she broke the kiss.

Hermione looked at Draco, saw the look of confusion in his eyes, and knew he had felt what she had. Clearing his throat he said “So, I’ll pick up at 7?”

“Okay,” Hermione replied as that was all that she could say.

Draco nodded at her in confirmation, looked over to where Luna stood, smiled and winked at her and left. Everyone in the office watched Draco leave, once he was gone the whole office applauded the scene they had witnessed as if watching a play.

“ _Finally_!” Luna said, “Now things can get back to normal around here.” She looked around her office and started yelling, “All right, all right settle down people. We have a 6pm deadline so get back to it.” Everyone quieted down and got back to work.

Hermione sat back down in her chair; her cheeks were flushed, and she still felt a bit giddy from the kiss. She raised a hand to her lips as if to savour the moment.

“Hermione, you have a little under four hours to retype that report of yours, is that clear?” Luna asked and all Hermione could do was nod her head in agreement.

Once Luna had retreated into her office, Hermione smiled and began her report. This time she made sure she left out her personal thoughts about Draco. Two hours later Hermione was proof reading before handing her work in. Happy with the result, she knocked on Luna’s door.

“You have your report?” Luna asked without looking up from what she was doing.

“Yes I do.” Hermione said and handed it to Luna.

Luna read the report, smiled and nodded. “Excellent, much better than your first draft.” She said and looked at Hermione “You can go. Get ready for your date and I expect a full report on that tomorrow.” Luna said smiling at Hermione.

“Yes boss.” Hermione laughed at Luna’s last remark and left for the day.

As soon as she stepped out onto the street, Hermione couldn’t help but feel excited about her dinner date and went in search of a new outfit to wear. She found herself back in Lady Sienna’s Boutique. After much deliberation, she finally settled on a dress, and accessories then left to get ready.


	9. An Interesting Find & The Date Begins

Sitting back in his office, Draco’s thoughts were still on the kiss. He was confused with what he felt. He hadn’t felt anything like it before. It was as if a bolt of energy surged right through him and the whole world had melted away.

His eyes came to rest on file that was lying on his desk; a few pages were falling out of it. Then he remembered; it was the file Harry had given him before he had left. Draco sat upright, pulled the file closer to him, and flipped it open and read the first page.

_Mr L. Malfoy_

_I thank you for entrusting me with such valuable documents. If you are, in fact, correct about these records, they should explain what your family prophecy is. With every soul that is born, a prophecy is made. Most prophecies are not of importance, while others cast what a soul is destined to do. The following pages contain ancient texts in which prophecies were made, however, deciphering the text has been the most frustrating as nothing magical will reveal its meaning, and we are still researching for a way in which to decipher it._

_I am of much interest as to how you came upon these pages, I am also sorry that I cannot help you any further at this point._

_Mr D. Davidson_

Draco’s eyes perked up as he noticed the signature at the bottom of the letter he had just read. _How had his father and the man who wrote this letter, the new Minister of Magic, known each other?_ He thought.

Draco flipped through the rest of the pages, and all he saw was symbols, pictures and what looked to him like scribble. “Well, this is rather exciting.” He said aloud as he closed the file.

“I see you have the same opinion as I do.” Came a voice from his door.

Draco looked up to see Harry standing there. “Yes, has the Minister seen this yet?”

“No. Once I found that, in one of your father’s file boxes, I came straight to you with it. I thought that maybe you had seen it before.” Harry said.

“No, I haven’t. With that said, I’d like to know what these pages contain and why my father had them in the first place.” Draco said as he passed the file back to Harry.

“I’m not sure who actually does this kind of stuff, but I’ll get on it.” Said Harry as he took the file back from Draco.

Draco glanced at the clock, and noticed that it was close to 6pm. “Damn,” He muttered. “Harry, I have to go, but if you could get on that straight away, that would be great.”

“No problem.” Harry replied and turned to leave, but before he did, Harry turned back to Draco and said, “Please, don’t hurt her. Hermione is one of my best friends, and she’s been hurt enough.”

Draco looked at Harry, surprised that he knew. “I have no intentions of hurting Hermione. How did you know?” Draco asked.

Harry laughed. “You kissed her in an office full of people who work for The Quibbler!”

“Oh, yeah.” Draco blushed. “Well, I better be off. See you tomorrow.” Then Draco left to get ready for his date.

An hour later, Draco was standing out the front of Hermione’s apartment. He was feeling nervous and excited, and he took a deep breath and knocked on her door. As the door opened, he caught sight of Hermione and he let the breath that he was holding out in a soft whistle.

Hermione had straightened her hair, but styled it, so it looked windblown. The dress she was wearing was black, thin straps; a layer of black satin was fit snuggly around her bust, which gave her a little cleavage. The rest of the dress flowed down to just above the knee. On her feet, she sported a lovely pair of black strapped, platform sandals.

She looked at Draco and smiled, as she loved the way he looked in black. He was wearing a plain black long sleeved shirt, with dark green tie that had a silver serpent wrapped around a dragon embroidered on it. As she glanced down, she noticed the same design on his belt buckle. Hermione lifted her eyes back up to his, as she did not want to think about what was hidden under those black pants of his. 

“You know Draco,” she began to say. “If you plan on just standing there staring at me all night, I may just have to leave you here and go out by myself.” Hermione said with amusement in her voice.

Draco smiled slowly took her hand in his and pulled her close to him, placing the hand that he held hers with behind Hermione’s back. With his other hand, he lightly traced a finger from the side of her face down to under her chin and slightly tilted her head up so that her mouth was just inches away from his.

“The word beautiful doesn’t even come close to describe how you look tonight.” He whispered against her lips.

Hermione could feel herself blushing and her heart was pounding in her chest. All she could see were those lips again. “Well, Draco, you don’t look all that bad yourself.” She replied and this time Hermione was the one to close the gap between them and pressed her lips to his.

The kiss started off soft and slow, and then deepened as both of them felt that jolt of energy surge through them once again. It was as if some unknown force were swirling around them, connecting them together.

Draco pulled himself out of the kiss first. He let go of Hermione’s hand and lightly ran his hands up and down her arms, their foreheads were pressed together, and they still had their eyes closed. They were both breathing a little heavy and slightly trembling from their kiss.

As Draco tried to pull his composure together, he said softly “I promised to be a gentleman tonight, so I suggest that we go before I break that promise.”

Hermione giggled at that remark, and finally opened her eyes and looked at him, she just simply nodded and let him lead her out.


	10. The Date

Draco had made reservations at the Escapade, a restaurant that is exclusive to the magical world. As they entered the restaurant, a short, plump man in a tuxedo greeted them.

“Ah, Mr Malfoy, how lovely to see you once again. I see your reservation is for two, please follow me.”

Hermione and Draco were seated in a secluded area near the back; candles lighted the table, and menus were waiting for them.

“Can I offer you some drinks?” The plump man asked

“Yes, a bottle of your finest Champaign, please,” Draco answered, and the plump man nodded and zoomed off towards the bar.

“Wow, Draco,” Hermione exclaimed “This place is fantastic. How did you manage to get a reservation so fast? This place is usually booked for weeks.”

Draco grinned, “One of the better benefits of being the son of Lucius Malfoy.”

“Oh.” Hermione whispered

“I’m glad you finally agreed to have dinner with me.” Draco admitted and wanting to get the conversation away from his father.

“Well, since you mentioned it, why me? Why be so persistent with me?” Hermione asked just as their glasses were being filled with Champaign.

Draco pondered her question for a moment, “I’m not the same person that you remember. I wanted you to see that for yourself.”

Hermione was about to ask another question when a waiter arrived and wanting to take their orders. After a brief browse of the menu, they ordered their dinners, and Hermione resumed their conversation.

“So what happened to you all those years you were gone? Everyone says you were missing.”

Draco laughed, "Missing. I guess I was. However, the question is, was I missed?"

“I don’t know about that.” Hermione said

“So, what about you? Hermione Granger, Assistant Editor for the Quibbler, how did that happen? I thought you’d be teaching or something more glamorous.” Draco asked

“So did I,” Hermione replied with a sigh “I guess I got sidetracked.”

Draco could see the sadness in her eyes, but he wanted to know more about her, so he pressed on. “Sidetracked? How?”

“Well, after the war, I finally confessed to Ron my true feelings for him. We were together for four and half years. Harry and Ron were both playing Quidditch and traveling all over, and Ginny and I followed them around. Eventually I wanted more, and Ron didn’t.” She wasn’t sure why she told Draco so much, but she hadn’t spoken to anyone about it before, and she felt relief that finally someone cared enough to know about her life.

“So the Weasel actually ended up being a Weasel then?” Draco said, but with amusement in his voice.

“Yeah, I guess he did.” Hermione replied with a laugh.

At that point, their dinner arrived. A they ate, they made light conversation over their meals. Once they had finished, Hermione tried to gain some more answers to the many questions she had in her head.

“So, you never did say what happened to you.” Hermione stated rather than questioned.

Draco was slightly uncomfortable being questioned about his past. He looked up at her and he wanted to tell her everything, but just not right now. He reached over the table and laid his hand on hers.

“There will be time for the past, right now; I want you to know who I really am, the man who sits before you now.” He said with a pleading look in his eyes.

Hermione could see that he was not ready to talk by the way he looked at her. He was different; she thought. He was nicer, softer. She looked down at his hand that lay so gently on top of her own hand. She then looked back up at him and saw there was no hatred in his eyes. There wasn’t even any smugness in his expression like there used to be. Finally, she smiled at him, took his hand in hers and held it tightly, letting him know she understood.

Draco was relieved, and squeezed her hand back in thanks as he smiled back at her. They heard music begin to play in the background, and saw that other couples were headed for the dance floor.

“Would you care to dance?” Draco asked her

“I would love to.” Hermione replied, and they both stood, and Draco led her to the dance floor.

A slow song had begun to play in the background, and Draco placed his arms around Hermione’s waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck. As they swayed to the music, Hermione rested her head on Draco’s chest. She could hear the beating of his heart and smiled to herself. She was still confused as to why she was here with Draco. Wasn’t it only that morning that she had been calling him evil? However, she couldn’t ignore the connection she felt with him whenever they kissed. She felt Draco rest his head on hers as they continued to drift across the dance floor, oblivious of anyone else in the room.  

Hermione held him tighter to her, almost hugging him and felt him wrap his arms around her tighter in response. For some reason, she felt safe in his arms, almost as if he were protecting her.

“Hermione,” she heard him whisper in her ear. “Thank you.” Draco said.

She pulled away from him slightly and looked up at him. She could see a little sadness in his eyes and wasn’t sure why, but she smiled up at him anyway. Then as if on cue, they were kissing each other.

Hermione was waiting for that same jolt of energy, but it didn’t happen. Instead, the feeling she was getting was like some kind of force was circling around them, as if there were an invisible thread wrapping itself around them both, connecting them to one another.

Eventually, Draco pulled out of the kiss. He too had felt what Hermione had felt, and it confused him. “I think it’s time I took you home.” He said and Hermione simply nodded, though, she didn’t really want the night to end.

Draco led her off the dance floor back to their table where they collected their things. As they neared the door to leave, Draco reluctantly let go of Hermione so he could pay the bill. Hermione looked around her and knew that she would never forget this night. The kisses she shared with Draco were nothing short of amazing, and she had never felt this way before, not even with Ron.

“Ready to go?” Draco asked as he approached her and draped his arm around her.

“No.” Hermione sighed, and Draco laughed at her response.

“So does this mean you like me, Miss Granger?”

“No.” Hermione said with a smile

“Well, what more can I do to change that to a yes?”

“You can take me out again.”

Again, Draco laughed at her response and could see the playful look on her face.

“Are you asking me out on a Date?” He asked her

“Yes, I guess I am.” She replied

Draco just smiled at her as he led her out of the restaurant and walked her home.

They walked in silence for some time; both lost in their own thoughts. Draco was astonished by his attraction to Hermione. She was the last person on earth he thought he would end up falling in love with. _Wait, did he just hear himself say that he was falling in love with Hermione? How could that be?_

As they approached Hermione’s door, he reluctantly let go of her, they stood there for a while just looking at each other, not wanting the night to end. Draco finally broke the silence.

“I had a wonderful time tonight. I’ll owl you for a second date,” He smiled “Just please answer yes.”

Hermione laughed, “I promise I shall say yes.”

“Good, well goodnight Miss Granger.”

“Oh, won’t you come in for coffee?” Hermione asked and hoped he wouldn’t leave.

Draco shook his head “No. I promised I’d be a gentleman, remember? If I don’t leave now, I won’t leave at all.”

Hermione sighed but understood. Draco leaned down and lightly kissed her lips. “Goodnight.” He whispered to her

“Goodnight.” She whispered back

Then Draco turned and left. Hermione sighed as she watched him walk away, then she let herself back into her apartment; she threw her keys on her side table as she closed the door. She walked towards her kitchen and flipped on the light, as she did; she jumped in fright and let out a small scream, as she saw a figure standing a few feet from her.


	11. A Fearful Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is OOC, but for a reason.

Hermione quickly grabbed her wand from her purse and held it straight out in front of her.

“Who’s there?” She asked shaking with fright. “Show yourself now or so help me I will hex you straight to hell.”

The figure moved forward and stepped out into the light. “It’s just me Hermione.” The figure said

“ ** _RONALD WEASLEY_**!” Hermione yelled out. “You scared me to death. What are you doing here? How did you get inside?”

“Ginny told me where I could find you, and I apparated here. Now do you think you could lower your wand, you’re freaking me out.” Said Ron as he stepped closer to Hermione.

“I’m sorry.” Hermione said and lowered her wand. She turned around and flicked on her kettle. “What are you doing here?” She asked without looking at him.

“I needed to see you. I want you back Hermione; I’m nothing without you.” Ron said pleading to Hermione.

The kettle finished boiling, and Hermione made herself a coffee and finally turned to look at Ron. He looked well; his eyes were sad though, that much she could tell. She took a sip of her coffee and finally spoke.

“You’ve had months Ron, months. I haven’t heard from you. No letters, no asking Ginny to ask how I was or to tell me you were okay. Now you just decide to turn up unexpectedly and ask me to go back to you. Exactly how do you see this night ending?” Hermione asked quite calmly.

Ron moved closer to Hermione “I love you. I was being selfish, and I should have realised that before. But I was just so happy and for the first time in my life, I felt free.” Ron began to explain, as he now stood right in front of Hermione. “The best thing about that freedom, was that I had you by my side.” Ron lifted Hermione’s chin so she could look at him. “Please Hermione, give me another chance. Let me show you how much I love you.” He said and leaned down and placed his lips on hers.

At first Hermione just stood there, but then she lets him kiss her. She relaxed and began to kiss him back. That’s when she realised that she didn’t feel anything. There were no feelings there. No connection like the one she felt with Draco. Hermione pushed Ron back, breaking the kiss and almost tipped her coffee over them both.

“Damn.” Hermione muttered as she put the coffee down on the bench and looked back at Ron.

“Hermione?” Ron asked

“You need to leave Ron.” Hermione began “I don’t love you anymore.”

Ron winced at hearing those words. Hermione could see the pain he was feeling, but knew she was making the right decision.

“It’s because of him, isn’t it?” Ron asked

“Him, who?” Hermione replied and puzzled by his question.

“Whoever you were with tonight. I could hear voices at your door, and you were with a guy. Is it because of him?”

“That is none of your business Ron.” Hermione said through clenched teeth, her anger rising. She walked past him and went to her door. As she opened it up, she motioned for him to leave with her wand that was still in her hand. “Just leave Ron.”

Ron walked over to where Hermione stood and slammed the door shut.

“No. I let you go once without a fight. I’m not making that mistake again.” He said now looking at her. He tried to read her expression, but he couldn’t see anything there.

Hermione was shocked at Ron’s reaction and her anger rose. Hermione turned and walked away from him, needing to put some distance between them. She stood in her living room trying to calm herself down.

“So,” Ron said as he turned to look at Hermione. “Is it because of the guy you were out with tonight?”

“I told you already Ron, that it is none of your business.” Hermione said as she raised her wand at Ron again. “Now, please leave Ron, or I’ll make you leave.”

Before Hermione knew it, Ron had his wand out.

“ _Expelliarmus_.” Ron flicked his wand, knocking Hermione’s wand out of her hand.

Hermione gasped in shock and backed away from him further. “What the hell are you doing?” She asked, this time she with fear in her voice.

Ron lowered his wand and stepped closer to her again. “I just want to talk to you.”

“R-Ron, you need to leave now.” Hermione stuttered as she backed away from him again. She didn’t notice her sofa was behind her, and she fell backwards onto it.

Ron used this to his advantage and lunged forward, so he was on top of Hermione.

“Get off me Ron.” Hermione yelled and tried to push him off her.

Ron grabbed her arms and pinned them up over her head. “Please, just listen to me, I love you Hermione, I know you still love me. All those years we spent together can’t have just disappeared.” He said and leaned down to kiss her again.

Hermione quickly moved her head to the side to avoid his kiss, she was still struggling against him to get him off her. “Ron, stop, please. You’re hurting me.” She managed to say as she felt him placing light kisses down her neck.

Ron stopped kissing her neck and looked at her, anger flashing in his eyes. “You hurt me, Hermione, did you ever care about that?” He spat the words out.

Hermione looked at him, and for the first time in her life she feared him. Not just scared of his reactions, but she felt pure fear, as if he would do something to hurt her. She felt tears slip down her cheeks as she looked at Ron. She could see the anger in his eyes and knew she had to get away from him.

“Please Ron, let me go.” She pleaded with him. “If you really love me like you say you do, you couldn’t hurt me like this. So please, let me go.” For a moment, she thought she could see some understanding in his eyes, but she was wrong.

“Show me that you love me.” He said, as if lost in his own world, and kissed her hard on the lips.

Hermione protested, but he was smothering her. He shifted his body slightly and tightened his grip on her arms. Finding her opportunity to escape, she kneed him as hard as she could to his groin.

“Aaaarrrrrhhhhh.” She heard him scream out in pain, and he fell off her onto the floor.

Hermione didn’t waste any time; she scrambled up onto her feet. “Accio Wand.” She yelled, and her wand flew into her hand. Hermione then closed her eyes and thought of Draco. She had no idea where he lived, but she pictured him clearly in her mind. Then with a loud crack, she disapparated.


	12. Jealousy is a Curse

After Draco had left Hermione, he was on his way home when he saw a familiar White Owl gliding towards him.

“Hedwig?” Draco asked as the owl swooped over his head and dropped a letter.

Draco reached out with his hand and caught it; he knew it was from Harry and quickly opened it up.

_Draco,_

_I apologise if you get this and you’re still on your date. However, I have some news about the file. I’m still in my office at the Ministry if you could meet me there? I think you may like to hear this information now._

_Harry_

The letter surprised Draco. “What on earth could be so important at this time?” Draco muttered to himself as he slipped into a quiet ally way and disapparated to the Ministry.

Harry was sitting behind his desk; his feet were propped up on the hard surface, and he was leaning back on his chair with his face buried in the file. Draco wondered why he would still be here and not with his wife to be.

“Why on earth are you still here, Potter?” Draco said announcing his arrival.

Harry jumped at the sound of the voice and nearly fell backwards off his chair. Once Harry regained his balance, he looked up to see Draco standing at the door, laughing at his apparent surprise.

“Ah, I thought you’d want to know what I have learned about your records. I must admit; I’m quite intrigued myself.” Harry said and gestured for Draco to take a seat opposite him. Draco obliged Harry and sat down, and Harry pushed the file he had been reading towards Draco.

“These documents are dated almost from the beginning of time,” Harry continued. “That’s why we have been having such a hard time deciphering the text. What we do know that it is a prophecy made for the Malfoy family.” Harry studied Draco’s face, but saw no emotion there, so he continued.

“What surprises me the most is that in these documents, contains your prophecy. We’ve checked what is left of the prophecies we have here at the Ministry, but no Malfoy was found.” Harry again stopped and looked at Draco. This time he actually looked interested in what Harry had to say.

“It is strange for prophecies to be made in this particular way. What is even more strange is that we _do_ know it’s not just your prophecy that we have come across, but that of your first unborn child.” Harry finished and continued to look at Draco.

This time, Draco sat upright and looked at Harry confused. “My first unborn child? How can that be? I thought prophecies were made when a soul is born.”

“In this case Draco, your first born child will already have its destiny pre-determined.” Harry stated.

Draco let out a frustrated sigh, unaware that he was even holding in a breath. He picked up the file that was sitting in front of him, and began to flip through its contents, when both he and Harry heard a loud crack. Both men jumped slightly and looked at each other. They both stood, and went in search of whoever had just apparated into the building.

~~*~~

Hermione looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings; her vision was blurred from her tears. She had no idea where she had apparated to and was still trembling from her encounter with Ron.

“Draco?” She called out and then heard footsteps coming towards her from her left. She spun around quickly and held her wand out in front of her. “Stop right there and don’t come any closer.” She yelled out to whoever was approaching her.

Draco and Harry both stopped dead in their tracks. “Hermione?” They both said at the same time as they both realised who was standing before them.

Hermione blinked her eyes a few times to clear her vision. She saw Draco and Harry standing there, and she lowered her wand. She looked from the man she desired to her best friend and finally fell to the floor sobbing, placing her hands over her face.

Draco and Harry rushed to her, Draco on one side, Harry on the other. They both placed an arm around her.

“Hermione, what’s wrong? What happened” Harry asked his voice full of concern.

“Draco.” Harry heard her whisper and at that moment he felt a pang of jealousy and pain.

Harry withdrew his arm from Hermione and stood up as he watched Draco wrap his arms around her and console his best friend. He had to turn around, as he felt pain from seeing the two of them together. One date and she goes to him; Harry thought to himself. He let out a sigh and turned back to face Hermione and Draco.

Harry cleared his throat and said, “Perhaps we should move to my office.”

Draco looked up at him and nodded in agreement. Harry walked over to Hermione, and with Draco’s help, they lifted Hermione up onto her feet, and Draco led her back to Harry’s office. Once inside, Draco sat Hermione down in a chair and sat in another that was beside her. Her sobbing had eased off a bit, and she was still leaning against Draco for comfort.

Harry entered behind them; he murmured a few words and flicked his wand. The papers that were on his desk disappeared and was replaced by a decanter and three glasses. Harry poured some of the gold liquid that was in the decanter into the glasses and offered one to Hermione and Draco. Hermione took the glass, and without thinking, gulped the lot down in one go. Her eyes shot open wide, and she began coughing and spluttering as she felt her throat burning.

“What the hell is that Harry?” She asked pointing to her now empty glass.

“Rum. You weren’t supposed to drink it all at once though.” Harry replied trying to hold back a laugh. He looked at Draco and could see he was holding back too.

Once Hermione recovered, Harry looked at his best friend “Tell us what happened.” He said bluntly.

Without thinking, Hermione reached out and took Draco’s hand in hers and held it tightly; she felt him gently squeeze her hand back. She then held out her other hand for Harry. Harry sat down on the edge of his desk and took Hermione’s hand in his.

Hermione then took a deep breath and said, “Ron attacked me.”

“What?” Both Harry and Draco shouted out at the same time. Hermione took another deep breath, and told them both what had happened only minutes before.

When Hermione got to the part where Ron had her pinned down, Draco jumped up out of his seat and started pacing Harry’s office, muttering to himself. Hermione briefly stopped talking and looked at Draco. His face showed he was angry and a little sad. Harry was bewildered with what was going on. Ron was his best friend too, and he had a hard time believing Hermione.

Harry looked down at the hand he was still holding, and that’s when he saw the bruises on her wrist. “Oh, my god, Hermione.” He said and rubbed his thumb gently over her wrists, as if he were trying to wipe them off. “Did Ron...Did he hurt you?”

Draco stopped pacing now and just looked at Hermione, his eyes wide and he held his breath waiting for her to answer.

Hermione shook her head, “No. I managed to kick him off, and I retrieved my wand and apparated here.” She said and looked at Draco. Draco let out his breath, relieved to hear she wasn’t hurt in that manner.

Draco nodded and began pacing again. _I should have stayed with her_ ; he thought to himself; _I should have accepted her offer of coffee and stayed with her. I could have protected her._ He broke out of his thoughts as he heard Hermione sniffling again. Harry had moved into the seat that Draco had been in and this time he had his arms around Hermione, consoling her. Draco felt jealous, for the first time in his life. He turned back away from Harry and Hermione; he wanted to be the one to have his arms around her. _Stop it, Draco, they are only friends!_ He thought to himself; then his thoughts returned to Ron. _That stupid red headed weasel! How dare he hurt her? How could he say he loves her and then hurt her like that?_

“I’ll find him, and kill him.” Draco said, only he didn’t realise he has spoken that out aloud.

Both Harry and Hermione looked at him. Hermione stood up and went over to Draco, putting a hand on his shoulder, and he turned to face her.

“Please, don’t do anything silly,” she pleaded with him. “I’m just tired now but I don’t want to go home. When I disapparated, I thought of you and I ended up here. Please Draco, just take me home. To your home.” She finished and looked for understanding in Draco’s eyes.

Finally, Draco nodded and held Hermione in his arms, embracing her tightly. He kissed the top of her head then whispered in her ear.

“I promise never to let anyone hurt you again.” Hermione sighed as she heard his words; she had no idea why, but she felt so safe in Draco’s arms, so she believed him when he said he’d protect her.

Harry again felt jealous at watching his best friend being in the arms of Draco Malfoy. Although he knew that Draco had changed, he still felt pain that she went to Draco and not him. He felt uncomfortable standing there, like he was witnessing something he shouldn’t be.

“Ahem,” Harry cleared his throat again and got Draco and Hermione’s attention. They broke their embrace and looked at Harry.  “I think that sounds like a good idea,” Harry lied but continued anyway. “You take Hermione to your place for the night and I’ll go back to the Burrow and see if Ron is there.” Harry spoke to Draco directly.

Hermione watched them both and was surprised that they were both actually compromising together. Something that she had never thought she would ever see in her life.

Draco nodded at Harry and looked back down at Hermione. “Are you ready to leave?” He asked her.

“Yes,” she replied, she looked over at Harry and mouthed the words “Thank you.” With a loud crack, Hermione and Draco were gone.

Harry sighed to himself. He hated watching Hermione leave with Draco. But he was the one who was defending Draco when Hermione was doubting Draco’s change of heart. Harry knew he had to trust his initial opinion, and then with another loud crack, Harry returned to the Burrow.


	13. A Muggle House

Hermione opened her eyes and found herself standing in an unfamiliar room; Draco still had his arms around her. She looked up at Draco and saw that he was smiling at her, she smiled back. _It’s cosy._ She thought as she quickly scanned the room.

“I think I’ll go and get the guest room ready and find you something to wear for the night.” Draco said, breaking the silence. “I’ll run you a nice warm bath so you can finally relax, okay?”

Hermione looked at him again; she smiled, then placed a small kiss on his lips. “Okay.” She replied.

Draco nodded at her and went down the hall, Hermione watched him disappear into a room and took the opportunity to have a better look around. As she wondered around the living room, admiring the paintings on the wall, she couldn’t help but be reminded of home. Not her home as in her apartment, but her parents’ home.

“Home.” She whispered. Then she stopped dead in her tracks. “Home?” She repeated this time questioning herself.

Hermione looked around the room she was in again, this time taking in everything, every little detail she could because she felt something was out of place. Her heart was beating faster as she took in everything that she was seeing; she felt confused and in disbelief.

“This is a Muggle house!” She said, not realising she was speaking aloud.

Hermione swept the room again with her eyes, and then moved forward. She stood in front of a T.V. and turned it on, almost instantly she was watching commercials on the screen, she moved to her right where a stereo system sat and turned it on too. She pressed play on the CD player and waited. Once the CD began to play, she recognised the song straight away, “ _Silence_ ” by _Delerium_ , a Muggle artist.

Hermione backed away from the stereo in confusion; she then looked again to the right. There was a stack of square shaped shelves, which ran from the floor to just above her height; the shelves filled the rest of the wall. There were little statues of animals, a few keepsakes and photos of Draco. Some of the photos were just of him; others had Draco and some unfamiliar looking people in it.

Hermione picked one up and studied the photo. Draco was standing by, what looked like, an old-fashioned horse cart. He was leaning against it, with a small smile on his face. He looked younger in this photo, but what she was more concerned about was the fact that he wasn’t moving. She shook the frame that the image was in, but still he didn’t leave.

Still not satisfied, she picked another one up, and it was not moving either. One by one, she picked up each photo, shaking them and poking at them, trying to see if the people in them would move. Finally, she gave up. They were Muggle photos. Just as she replaced the last photo, she heard a faint laugh from behind her. Hermione turned around and saw Draco standing by the entrance to the hall, he was laughing at her.

Draco had walked back to the living room and witnessed Hermione shaking and poking at his photos, he couldn’t help but laugh as he had not witnessed such a thing before.

“Hermione, what are you doing?” He asked as he walked towards the TV and turned it off, though he didn’t mind the music, so he left the stereo on.

“I…I don’t understand. This is a Muggle house. There are Muggle things in it. The photos you have are Muggle photographs.” Hermione stated.

Draco studied Hermione, confused by her reaction. “Yes, I know all of this. You’re a Muggle; I didn’t realise any of this would shock you.” He replied.

“Of course I’m shocked Draco.” Hermione said on the verge of hysterics. “You’re a Malfoy, a Pureblood; you come from a line of Magical Witches and Wizards. You loathed Muggles and everything that had anything to do with the Muggle world. Now, all of a sudden, you are taking me out on a date, kissing me, wanting to get to know me, and you live like a Muggle. When exactly did this complete turnaround happen?” Hermione finally finished.

Draco stared at Hermione, a little taken aback by her outburst. “People change, Hermione.” He began to say as he stepped closer towards her. In that same moment, Hermione jumped back a little, wanting to keep some distance between them.

Draco pulled himself back; he felt his heart drop, hurt by Hermione’s actions. He didn’t want Hermione to see the pain in his eyes, so he looked down at his feet as she began to speak.

“I think we should call it a night. You have been through enough today." He glaced quickly at her and saw that she was about to say more, but he quickly got in before her. "Please, just get some sleep, and I’ll make sure that the house is secure.” Draco lifted his head and looked past Hermione as he continued. “Your room is down the hall, second door to the left, there is an entrance to the bathroom from your room where your bath awaits you. I have placed some clothes and a fresh towel on your bed. My room is just across the hall from your room.” Draco looked at Hermione this time. “Good night.” He walked past her and into his room.

Hermione watched him go; she was terribly confused and a little hurt by his cold dismissal of her. She wanted to understand Draco when he said that he had changed, but he always brushed off her questions. Sighing, Hermione walked down the hall and into her room.

As she stepped into her room for the night, she closed the door behind her. The room was quite plain; a double bed was on the left side of the room, a chest of drawers on the left. In front of her, she could see plain curtains hanging, obviously where the window stood, then to her right she saw a door that was slightly opened.

Hermione could see a soft flickering light emanating from behind the door, she stepped towards it and swung it open. She let out a small gasp as she took in the sight. All around the bathroom were candles that lit up the room; she could smell a mixture of lavender and flowers in the air. She stepped closer to the bath, and a few tears sprang to her eyes as she saw rose petals scattered in the water. She reached out with her hand and tested the water; it felt incredible and warm. Hermione stripped out of her clothes and slipped into the bath; she dunked herself under the water and resurfaced, relaxing as she let the warmth of the water slip over her body.

When Draco heard Hermione close her bedroom door, he exited his room and returned to the living room. Music was still playing from the stereo, and he walked over to it, turning it off. He looked at all his pictures that Hermione had picked up then began to put them all back in their rightful places. _I’ll tell you everything soon._ Draco thought to himself.

He turned back to the room, withdrew his wand and chanted a few words. Then, with a flick of his wand, he enchanted his house against any intruders. Satisfied with his job he switched off the lights and returned to his room. As Draco begun to change to ready himself for bed, he couldn’t help but feel the pain in his heart again. All his life he has always tried to be what someone else wanted him to be. His father always had him in some kind of training, and he was always trying to impress his father. Then when he was taken away, he had to pretend his life, as he knew it, didn’t exist. Now, he was able to be himself, yet still he had to prove his worth.

“What will it take?” Draco whispered to himself, but deep down inside, he already knew the answer to that. He slipped under the covers of his bed, and before he allowed himself to sleep; he made a vow. When the time was right, he would tell Hermione everything.


	14. Tempers Fly and a Family Divided

… ** _Meanwhile at the Burrow_** …

Harry had apparated into the Weasley’s kitchen; he walked over to Molly’s clock of the family and looked to see where Ron’s hand was pointing. “Lost” it said and Harry let out a sigh.

“Harry?” Came a voice from behind him, he knew it was Ginny. Harry turned to face her, and she could see the sadness in his expression.

“What’s wrong?” Ginny asked as she approached Harry

“It’s about Ron.” Harry replied flatly.

He retold the night’s events to Ginny. As he was talking, Harry could see the anger rise in Ginny, she began to pace the kitchen floor and her face turned red, as she cursed under her breath. When Harry had finished talking, Ginny finally stopped pacing. She looked at Harry and let out a sigh.

“Well, there isn’t much we can do right now. Come, Harry. Let’s go to bed, and we can tell Mum and Dad in the morning.” Ginny said as she took Harry’s hand in hers and pulled him gently to follow her.

Harry allowed Ginny to take him up the stairs and to their room. As Harry began to get ready for bed, he still had something nagging his mind.

“Ginny, do you think it wrong of me to be jealous of Draco?” He asked

Ginny looked at Harry, concern on her face. “I guess it depends on why you were jealous.” She replied.

Harry let out a sigh and sat on the edge of their bed and Ginny sat beside him.

“I’m not in love with Hermione,” Harry stated and looked at Ginny and smiled “I’m in love with you.” Ginny smiled at Harry and gave him a quick kiss on his lips.

“I guess it’s just that, for the last 10 years, it was always Me, Hermione and Ron. I know we have been together for a while, but I mean the three of us have been friends since our first year at Hogwarts.” Harry continued and looked at Ginny to see if she understood. Ginny was nodding at Harry.

“Go on, Harry.” Ginny urged him on.

“Well, when Hermione first left Ron, I understood her reasons, but I couldn’t help but feel sad that one of my best friends was gone. I almost hated Ron; you know. I used to wonder why Ron couldn’t be more respectful for Hermione’s wants and needs.” Harry shook his head and continued. “I don’t know, I guess from my point of view I could see her unhappiness and when I tried to point it out to Ron, he never saw what I did.”

“Now, Hermione is with Draco. Although they may have only gone on one date, it still hurts to see her with him. I know Draco has changed, but she was always denying seeing that. So why did she choose him to comfort her? Am I not good enough of a friend anymore?” Harry questioned himself more as opposed to asking a question to be answered.

Ginny had been listening and with Harry’s last question, she whispered “Oh, Harry.” And leaned over and hugged him. She felt his arms wrap around her, and he hugged her back.

“I don’t think that she thinks you’re not a good enough friend.” Ginny said while still in their embrace. “I think her date with Draco went well, and when it came to someone she needed to be with, she chose the person whom she felt closer to, on a deeper level then a friend.” Ginny finished.

Harry seemed to be thinking over what Ginny had said, after a while he let out a sigh and looked at Ginny.

“I guess you’re right.” He said. Ginny nodded her head then climbed under the covers, and Harry did the same.

“Good Night, Harry.” Ginny whispered

“Good Night.” Harry whispered back and then sleep took over them both.

~~*~~

Harry woke the next morning to the sound of screaming women. As Harry rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, he let a small laugh escape, as he thought that Ginny and Mrs Weasley had another one of their disagreements. He heard someone running up the stairs then Mrs Weasley shouting.

“ ** _Ginny, don’t walk out on me_**!” Exclaimed Molly

“ ** _Mother, if you insist on walking around with your eyes shut for the rest of your life that is your choice_**.” Ginny replied

“ ** _How dare you Ginny! How dare you speak so ill of your brother then have the nerve to tell me that my eyes are shut. It’s that Malfoy boy! The Minister may have cleared him, but I certainly haven’t. Ron wouldn’t hurt a fly, let alone the woman he loves. Hermione left him with a broken heart and went to that boy! If anything, Malfoy must have done something to my son_**.” Molly ranted on talking to herself more than to Ginny.

“ ** _For the last time Mother, Hermione had reason to leave Ron and it had nothing to do with Draco. Ron forced himself on Hermione, and now he seems to be “Lost”_**.” Ginny emphasised the word “Lost”, quoting her mother’s clock, then continued. “ ** _You know Harry as well as I do, Mum. Why would Harry lie about any of this? Why would Hermione lie_**?”

Harry could hear that Mrs Weasley was going to say something, but Ginny had silenced her.

“No Mother, I don’t want to hear it. Draco was with Harry at the Ministry when this all happened, so how could Draco have anything to do with Ron’s actions?” Ginny finished.

Harry heard silence for a while. He guessed both women were thinking about what Ginny had just said. Then Harry jumped and nearly fell out of bed as he heard Mrs Weasley shout out.

“ ** _That’s it! I won’t have this nonsense in my house. If that is how you and Harry feel, then you can both leave my home and not return until your brains do_**!”

“ ** _Fine_**.” Ginny said through clenched teeth, then she stomped up the rest of the stairs, back into her room, and slammed the door behind her.

Harry saw his fiancé had tears in her eyes, her face red with anger, and she started to fill their suitcases with clothes and other belongings of theirs.

“Gin,” Harry began, but Ginny cut him off.

“Just pack, Harry.” Ginny said and, so that’s what Harry did.


	15. Thoughts Reflected and a Plan is Devised

Draco chuckled softly to himself as he heard the voices around his home. For a man who once fell in love with complete silence, he now truly appreciated the fact that he actually had real friends. Those voices didn’t just belong to his friends though; they were his house mates, as well.

He looked over at his half-packed suitcase and sighed; they were all leaving in a few hours to attend The Ministry of Magic Muggle Peace Treaty Conference. However, he couldn’t help but let his thoughts stray away from his packing.

It had been three months since Harry and Ginny turned up at the Ministry looking for him. Ginny was in tears, and they both had suitcases with them. Harry had explained the argument Ginny had with her mother that morning and that they needed a place to stay. He was surprised that Harry had asked him, but with Hermione not wanting to return to her apartment, he thought it was a good idea. If Hermione wouldn’t accept him, then the least he could do, was allow her to be with her friends.

At first, it was hard to get used to other people being in his space, but after a while, he managed to get used to it. Ginny had helped Hermione pack her things at her apartment and move them into Draco’s house. That is how his new living arrangements came to be today. The hardest part about living with these three new friends was that he wanted Hermione to be more than just a friend. After her first night at his home though, Hermione kept her distance, and being the gentleman, he promised her to be, he respected her wishes.

Their lives continued as if nothing had happened. A search was called to try to locate Ron, who was now listed as an official missing person. Hermione asked Luna if she had a vacant position for Ginny to work at the Quibbler. Luna had agreed that Ginny could help Hermione spit her workload, which came particularly handy for the conference. Luna wanted exclusive interviews, so Hermione and Ginny devised a plan to cover the key people.

He and Harry continued to search for a way to decipher his prophecy. However, no matter how hard they tried, they kept coming up with dead ends. Most of those who had the knowledge to read the text were either killed in the war or had gone mad, from Voldemort’s Imperius Curse.

Draco’s new home life was a blessing and a curse. He was somewhat envious and jealous of Harry and Ginny. They seemed so happy with each other, and he often watched Hermione, as she flipped through bridal magazines with Ginny. He wondered if one day he would look over at her flipping through one of those magazines for a dress to wear at her own wedding, and if he would be the one to meet her at the alter.

Draco had convinced the three of them to spend the weekend away with him as the conference is being held at the Country Inn. The Country Inn is a Muggle farm homestead, made into a country bed and breakfast retreat. He has booked them a little private cottage, which is situated a few meters away from the central accommodation and function centre where the conference will take place. This will allow for some privacy while they are gone.

Draco walked over to his wardrobe and opened it up; he pulled out some more clothes that he will need as well as some robes. Then his eyes fell on a small wooden chest that was hidden up on the top shelf. He reached up and pulled the box down, smiling to himself as his eyes rested upon the carved writing on the lid.

“ _Draco Malfoy, my Angelic Son._ ” It read. His mother had given the chest to him on his 16th birthday. Sadly, it was the second last gift he ever received from her. The last gift she had given him was inside the chest. Draco pulled out his wand, pointed it at the chest and murmured a few words. Once the unbinding spell was cast, the chest lid opened. Draco took its contents out and fitted them into his jacket pocket.

He put the chest back into its place, and then closed his wardrobe. He finished packing his clothes and double-checked he had all that he needed. Draco had planned this weekend away since the day that Harry and Ginny came to stay here. This was his last effort he was going to put into trying to get Hermione to see that he really had changed.

“If this doesn’t work, then nothing will.” Draco whispered to himself and patted his jacket pocket, which contained the key to his past, and what ultimately made him the man he is today.

If he planned right, he would eventually reveal his past to Hermione. Opening  his heart completely for the first time, it was a risk, but one he was willing to take for the woman he was in love with. He then closed his bags and suitcase and finally exited his room.

“Ah, good morning Draco,” Ginny smiled as she saw him emerge from the hall. “Breakfast is just being served.” She called out from the kitchen as he placed his suitcases by the front door.

Draco made his way over to the kitchen and poured himself a coffee. He looked over at the dining table and saw Hermione sitting there engrossed in a file of papers.

“She has been going over the briefing of the conference for days making sure she doesn’t miss anything or anyone. Luna is expecting nearly a whole edition worth on this conference for the magazine.” Ginny said as she noticed Draco staring once again at Hermione.

Draco nodded and smiled at Ginny letting her know that he had heard her. Ginny looked between Draco and Hermione and shook her head. She knew they were both attracted to each other, but she didn’t understand why they both wouldn’t act on it.

Draco watched Hermione reading and making notes, smiling at the way she always twirled a lock of her hair around her fingers when she was in deep concentration. He poured another cup of coffee and made his way over to the dining room.

“Oh, Draco,” Ginny stopped him before he left the kitchen. “I believe you were supposed to ask Hermione out on a second date. When do you think you’ll get around to it?” She asked in amusement.

Draco raised a brow at her and replied, “Ginny, I thought you were serving up breakfast. When are you going to get around doing it?” he winked at her to show that he was joking, and Ginny laughed at his response shooing him away to the dining table.

Draco placed the second cup of coffee he had down by Hermione and took a seat next to her.

“Oh. Thank you.” Hermione said as she finally lifted her head out of the file of papers.

“So, you’re heading this conference with the Minister?” She asked looking at Draco.

“Yes, the Minister thought I’d be the best for the job considering the circumstances.” He replied.

“Oh, and what circumstances are they?” Hermione said with interest.

Draco laughed, “Are you interviewing me already?” He asked.

“No, Ginny will be doing that after the conference. I was just wondering why you were doing this.” She said flatly.

“Why is Ginny going to interview me? Why not you?” Draco asked with disappointment in his voice. He was hoping she would interview him that way he had an opening to put his plan into action.

“Well, as I’m Muggle born, we thought it best if I interviewed the Muggles and Ginny would handle the Ministry of Magic side of things.” She replied.

“Oh.” Draco replied. He was lost in his thoughts as Ginny served their breakfast. Draco needed to find a way to ease into the subject of his past without being too straightforward. He needed Hermione to be relaxed and in her comfort zone so she wouldn’t try to avoid him.

At that point, Harry had returned from picking up a Ministry car, he flipped the keys on a side table and walked up behind Ginny, slipping his hands around her waist, and placed a kiss on her cheek.

“Good morning, Harry” Hermione called out as she watched her two best friends snuggling up to each other.

“Morning,” Harry replied then looked at Draco. “Is everything okay, Draco?” Harry asked as he saw Draco sitting and poking at his food with a frown on his face.

“Ah, yeah. I’m just not feeling hungry. I’ll go and get the car packed while you all eat.” Draco said as he rose out of his seat and left.

“What’s wrong with him?” Ginny asked Hermione

“I have no idea.” Hermione shrugged and finished her plate of food. She knew he was disappointed when she told him that she wasn’t going to be the one who interviewed him, but she had no idea why.

As Harry and Ginny sat down at the table to eat, Hermione became lost in her own thoughts. Since that first night here, she had purposely kept her distance from Draco. Her confusion about him was tearing her up inside.

She was missing him. Although that seemed weird, even for her, to comprehend, but she missed being close to him. She missed the feel of his lips on hers. She missed that feeling of being connected to him. She knew deep down that she had fallen for him, but she wouldn’t allow herself to admit it. She had too many questions about his past that he refused to answer, and her brain just wouldn’t let her get past it.

They seemed to have fallen into a pattern these days. She would pass light conversations with him but never get to deep or involved where they had to be alone for too long. She avoided looking at him in the eyes as much as she could because she was afraid to fall into them and lose the grip she had on herself.

The clinking of dishes bought Hermione out of her thoughts, Harry and Ginny were cleaning up. She gathered up her files and placed them back into her briefcase.

“Ready to go?” Draco called out from the front door.

“Just about.” Ginny yelled out as her and Harry wiped up the last of the dishes.

Moments later, they all piled into the car. Draco was driving, and Harry sat up in front with Draco. The girls were happy to sit in the back, and Ginny pulled out more bridal magazines.

As they set off, Draco stole a glance at Hermione. He saw her smiling and pointing out dresses that she liked, and he couldn’t help but smile to himself. He knew that, by the end of the weekend, he would have Hermione back in his arms.


	16. The Car Trip

The drive to the Country Inn took almost two hours; Hermione looked around at her friends in the car. Harry was flipping through some files; Ginny was busy with organising her wedding, and Draco was strumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he listened to some music on the radio.

Throughout the trip, Hermione would glance at the rear view mirror and steal a look at Draco. Every now and then, Draco would look into the same mirror and be looking back at Hermione. Their eyes would connect for a few seconds, bringing smiles to their faces.

Sighing as she sat back in her seat, Hermione let her thoughts drift to Draco once again. These last few months had been most difficult, as she so desperately wanted to snuggle up into Draco’s arms, to allow him to comfort her when she needed it. Ron was still missing, and although she was hurt by what he had done, all she really needed now, was to know if he was alive or not.

Thinking of Ron made her heart sink. She had loved him so much. Hermione didn’t really know when she had stopped loving Ron, but as she looked back up to the rear view mirror, she saw Draco looking back at her. She could tell he was concerned about her from the expression on his face. She knew then that there was only one man left in her heart to love, and she was staring at him.

Draco darted his eyes from the mirror to the road and back again. He noticed the change in Hermione’s emotions and he really just wanted to have his arms around her, to tell her that everything would be okay. Without even realising it, Draco moved his left arm down and behind him, to offer Hermione his hand. He saw Hermione smile at him as she took his hand in hers and squeezed it gently. He squeezed her hand back to let her know that he was there for her.

Ginny had been noticing Draco and Hermione looking at each other all through this little car ride. Her heart was split in two over the subject. Ron was her brother, regardless of what he may or may not have done; he was her blood. Hermione was her best friend though, and she knew that Draco loved Hermione and vice versa. It was so bloody obvious. And Ginny didn’t miss seeing Draco’s gesture either. As Hermione took Draco’s hand, Ginny made a promise to herself that she would try to get these two together by the end of this trip.

They finally arrived at the Country Inn. Hermione and Ginny both gasped as they took in the site of the homestead for the first time. The Inn was a huge colonial mansion, surrounded by huge sweeping gardens. They drove past the Inn, and then they finally came by a set of gates. Draco pushed a button on a device, which he had in his hand, and the gates slowly opened.

They drove down a small driveway, and the car finally came to a halt. As they exited the car, they all stretched out there arms and legs; Hermione looked around and laughed at the sight of all four of them doing the exact same thing. Harry, Draco and Ginny all looked at Hermione. Ginny realising what Hermione was laughing at, joined in the joke, and laughed herself. Both men stood looking at the girls not understanding what was funny, which seemed to make the girls laugh more.

“ _Women_!” Harry exclaimed and shook his head; Draco nodded in agreement and moved to unload the car of their luggage.

“The cottage is open, so feel free to let yourselves in.” Draco stated as he and Harry pulled out their bags and suitcases.

Hermione and Ginny headed towards the entrance of the cottage. Once inside, both girls looked around. The cottage was quite large. As they entered, they were greeted with a huge living area, and further back is where the kitchen and dining area was. Hermione noticed a sliding door between the kitchen and dining room, and peeked out.

There was a wooden deck with matching chairs and table; Hermione stepped out onto the deck and noticed the gardens. She walked over to the railing of the deck and realised that this part of the cottage was up higher than the ground. Hermione let her eyes scan her surroundings, and she took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. She allowed herself to relax a bit for the first time in a while. She felt a sense of calm and serenity, as she took in the sight and sounds of the country.

Hermione’s eyes came to stop on something not too far into the garden. There stood an old horse cart. The one that she saw Draco leaning against in his picture. _Draco has been here before._ She thought to herself. She let out a sigh, as usual, just when she thought she couldn’t ask any more questions about Draco; she found a way to want to know more.

She turned back around and headed back inside. She made her way to the living room again and to her left was the hall leading to all the bedrooms. Hermione walked down the hall and peeked into every room.

As her head popped in one door, she saw Draco changing out of his shirt. Hermione gasped as she took in Draco’s half-naked form. His back was to her, and she noticed that he was beautifully sculptured. As he turned to get his robes that were hanging up beside him, she drank in his profile. Even from where she stood, she could see the ripples of muscles that he sported on his torso.

Hermione felt her stomach flutter and her heart beat faster as she could feel that energy vibrating through her, she was about to turn away when Draco noticed her standing there.

“Hermione, are you okay?” Draco asked and forgot about his robes as he stepped up to Hermione.

“Ah…Yes.” She said looking back at Draco; she could feel her cheeks blush as she allowed her eyes to roam over him again. “I was just looking for my room.”

He stood so close to her now, looking down at her. His body was so close that she could feel the heat of him on her skin. Their eyes were locked and they both felt that energy now. As if in a trance, Draco leaned his head slightly to the side, and leaned down to kiss her. Hermione's breathing became shallow and fast; she went to place her hands on his chest. She wanted to feel his skin and feel every curve he had to offer. Hermione stopped herself though and took a small step backwards, looking down and away from him.

“My room, Draco?” She asked

Blinking a few times, Draco pulled himself up straight and looked at Hermione. “It’s right next door” He said, and she could hear the slight tremor in his voice.

Hermione nodded and quickly turned and headed for her room. Once safely inside, she closed her door and leaned up against it. She walked over to her bed and plopped herself down on it. She took a few deep breaths to steady herself and knew she had to keep her distance from him.


	17. The Plan Falls into Place

The conference concluded. The Minister and the Muggle Prime Minister were standing and shaking hands. Hermione had almost fallen asleep during the conference, amazed at just how boring it actually was. They discussed the same old things. Protecting Muggles against the Magical World as much as they could, both parties promising to keep each other informed on anything that may be of importance, that kind of thing.

Hermione and Ginny both rose from their seats and began to find those they needed to interview. A few hours later, all four friends were walking back to the cottage. They all looked tired, as they entered the cottage.

“Are we all hungry?” Ginny asked

“Yes.” The others replied at the same time.

They all cleaned up before dinner, and Ginny and Harry set about preparing their meal for the evening. Hermione found the plates and cutlery that they needed and went to set the table.

“Why not set up outside on the deck.” Draco stated. “It’s a lovely night outside.” He finished.

Hermione smiled, nodded, and moved outside on the deck. Draco found a nice bottle of wine, collected four glasses, and followed her out. He placed the glasses by each plate and set the bottle of wine down on the table. He watched Hermione set the rest of the table, and he still hadn’t figured out a way to approach her about his past. He was about to speak to her when she quickly darted back inside. He let out a sigh; she was avoiding him again. Draco turned and headed back inside.

Ginny and Harry were almost done and ready to serve dinner, when it occurred to Draco how he could ease their conversation onto a path that he needed it to be on. He planned on waiting until after dinner when he knew they always relaxed in some conversation before retiring for the night. He smiled to himself as he helped bring the food outside to the table.

As they began to eat their dinner, Draco and Harry were in a discussion about the day’s conference and Hermione and Ginny conversed about their interviews they had conducted. Dinner ended, and Draco topped off their glasses with some more wine. Ginny began to clean the table when she heard Draco laugh.

“What is so funny, Mr Malfoy.” Ginny asked

“You.” He said flatly. “Leave the dishes for now. I think we all deserve a little break.” He smiled and winked at Ginny. She smiled in return, placed the dishes back down on the table, and sat back down.

They sat in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts, and finally Harry broke the silence.

“It’s beautiful out here.” He said to no one in particular.

“Yes,” Draco agreed. “That’s why I bought the property.”

All eyes were suddenly on Draco.

“You own all of this?” Hermione asked, the surprise showing on her face

Draco nodded to answer her question. His idea was to begin now otherwise he would lose his nerve.

“You know,” He began. “I’ve noticed over these last few months that it’s funny that we all hold Magical powers, yet we all live like Muggles.” He laughed lightly. “Why is that none of you uses your magic anymore?” He asked.

Hermione looked at him with a shocked expression. _Why on earth would he ask such a thing?_ She thought. He is the one who should answer his own question before she should.

“Well," Harry began, setting his glass of wine back down on the table. “After the war, we realised how much death and destruction we caused. Our Magic is a gift, yet we used it to fight against each other. We had used so much power in defending ourselves that once the war was over; it seemed like a blessing to not use our magic. It’s just as easy to do things the Muggle way, as you know.” Harry finished and looked at Draco with his last statement.

Draco nodded and smiled at Harry, then as he suspected; Hermione spoke up, giving him his opening for his idea.

“How about you Draco?” Hermione asked. “If anyone has any explaining to do, it’s you. How is it that you changed from a boy who loathed Muggles, to actually living like one and accepting their ways?” she finished.

Draco thought of his way to answer, he looked around the table and saw that Hermione, Ginny and Harry were all looking at him; they all wanted to know the answer to Hermione’s questions. _This is it._ He thought. _It is now or never._ Hermione thought he was going to fob off her questions again, then she saw him nod in agreement and she saw him take a deep breath, and then he began to speak.

“Allow me to start from the beginning.” He began and looked at Hermione. 

“The night that Professor Snape took me away from Hogwarts, was the night that changed my life forever.” They all knew which night he was talking about, but let him continue.

“Snape brought me here. For all those years, people thought I was missing. I lived right here, in this very cottage.” He heard them all gasp in shock.

“But...But we searched this entire country for you.” Harry stated.

“I would imagine so.” Draco said; he could see Harry about to ask another question, but Draco cut him off and continued with his story. “Snape put many enchantments on this place against the Magical world. Much like Hogwarts is enchanted against Muggles. However, Snape placed another enchantment, one that made me angry for quite some time.” Draco now rose from his seat and walked over to the railing of the deck. He sipped his wine then turned to his audience of friends and continued.

“A protection spell was cast on me and these grounds. A magical boundary was set up all around the Inn, trapping me inside. Snape told me that I had to stay here until he returned for me. I protested, but Snape simply left. Days turned into weeks; weeks turned into months and eventually I gave up counting.”

“At first, I was so angry I didn’t leave the cottage for days. I was trapped in a Muggle world, full of everything I was taught to hate. I was scared too; I had betrayed Voldemort and knew that he would try to come after me.”

“As the months went on though, I never heard from anyone. I thought that my parents would surely come for me, but they never did. My anger and fear turned into loneliness. I spoke to only two other people, the Muggles that run the Inn. They are the only two people who know about the Magical world, and they both hold some Magical powers.”

Hermione, Ginny and Harry had their eyes glued to Draco, taking in his every word. Draco looked at his friends and continued once again.


	18. Secrets Revealed

“The two Muggles helped me complete my schooling, which was most frustrating. I seemed to know more then they did, and I felt like I was teaching them, as opposed to being a student.”

“I have no idea when it was, when one day Snape had returned. He looked pale and thin; his robes were torn and ragged. He informed me that my parents were dead and that Voldemort had been defeated.” Draco’s voice became shaky as he remembered the emotions that swept through him that day. He heard gasps come from the table, but he continued.

“Snape then told me that, with the clean up of the war, I was to remain here till my 18th birthday. At the precise moment that I was born on my 18th birthday, the boundary spell would disappear and I would be free to go. Then as quickly as Snape appeared, he was gone again.”

“That was the last time I ever saw Snape. After he had left, I was in a rage. I really should have been grieving the loss of my parents, but at that moment, I was glad they were dead. I hated them so much for abandoning me. They left me here in a place where I had no friends, no-one to talk to and no magic.”

“Being a Muggle place, I wasn’t allowed to do anything Magical unless I was in a lesson. My wand was confiscated the day I arrived here and only returned to me when I was supposed to be learning.”

“Once my rage subsided all I felt was the emptiness of my life. I never once stepped foot out of the cottage grounds. I didn’t want to know what was beyond its walls. I then realised that I didn’t even know what day it was or what month. I found a Muggle calendar and found it to be late September. My 17th birthday had come and gone, and I didn’t even know about it. I had just less then a year left in this house, and then I would be free.”

Draco stopped for a moment as he heard some sniffling. He noticed that Hermione and Ginny were both crying for him; Harry looked like he was on the verge of tears too.

“I stayed within the safety of these walls, and then as my 18th birthday approached, I packed my bags, requested a broom, and sat here on this very deck, looking up at the sky. At 11:34am the boundary would be lifted.” Draco had continued. “I sat here waiting, every minute that went by felt like hours. There was a small amount of excitement inside of me at the thought of finally being free. Then at exactly 11:34am,” Draco looked up at the sky, remembering the moment as if it happened yesterday.

“The barrier that held me in this area shimmered and you could see the different colours of the enchantment being lifted. I was finally freed.” He said with a sigh

“Once I knew I could leave, I went to mount my broom then suddenly realised I had nowhere to go. I had no idea if any of my old friends had survived the war; my parents were dead and going back to the Malfoy Mansion lost its appeal to me. So, I decided to stay here.”

Draco stopped once again and topped his glass of wine up again before he started to speak once more.

“That day I ventured outside these cottage walls and saw what the Inn had to offer. Mr And Mrs Heartford, the Muggles who run the Inn, were most surprised to see me emerge from my seclusion. They knew I had wanted to leave. Instead I asked for a job at the Inn; they were confused to start off with; however, I was given odd jobs to do around the place.”

“As time went by, I had made a few friends with the staff that worked at the Inn. I found a place in the Muggle community without judgment on my past or whom I used to be. For the first time in my life, I actually felt one hundred percent free; I felt loved and accepted. The loneliness I used to feel disappeared and I was again at peace with the world, with my life.”

“Then about a year ago, I received some news that threatened everything that I had grown to know and love. The original owners of the Inn had decided to sell. I couldn’t bare the thought of losing the place I called home, the people whom I grew to love and call my family."

"So that’s when I decided to return to the Magical world. I had a fortune sitting somewhere waiting for me to claim. Also, the idea of using my parent’s money to buy into the Muggle world gave me great pleasure.” At the memory of this, Draco began to laugh. He finally sat back in his seat and looked at Hermione, Ginny and Harry.

The three of them were staring at him, completely silent and not knowing what to say. Finally, Harry once again broke the silence. “So then what happened? What made you turn everything over?”

“Ah yes...” Draco said with a sigh. “Returning to the home I had lived in for 16 years was something I dreaded. When I returned to the Mansion, the place was immaculate. Almost as if, I had never left. Once my presence was known, about twenty house elves popped up in front of me. They all bowed and welcomed me back home. At first I was upset, but then I remembered that house elves were a regular thing in the Malfoy Mansion.”

“I dismissed the elves, asking them to leave me alone. I roamed the house as if I was seeing it for the first time. I finally entered my fathers study. I remember feeling as if his presence was still there, watching me and about to pounce on me if I dared touch anything.”

“I looked over on his desk, and there on top sat his journal. I picked it up and flicked through its pages, as I did, these…” As Draco continued to speak, he pulled out two envelopes from his robes and placed them on the table. “…fell out of the journal.”

Draco looked at the letters, the contents that he kept in his wooden chest, and continued. “After reading these letters, my whole previous life, the one I grew out of and left behind, shattered. After reading those, “Draco pointed at the letters, “I found out that the first 16 years of my life were a lie, a mistake, something that should never have happened.” He finished.

All four of them were staring at the letters. Hermione, Ginny and Harry were all curious as to what those two letters contained. Draco pushed the letters towards Hermione. She was shocked and looked at him for clarification.

“Hermione, you have been asking me about my past the most. You’re the one who doubts my sincerity and trust the most. Please, read the letters.”

Hermione reached out and took one of the letters in her hands. The writing on the front was slender and feminine to the eye. She knew this was from a woman.

With slightly shaking hands, she opened the envelope, took out the letter, and began to read it aloud.

“ _To my Angelic Son_ ,” The letter began.


	19. Letters and Emotions

_I wish there was more time to tell you what I need to tell you. Your father and I will be called soon to fight in the second wave of attack, and we must go. I know that your father and I will not survive in this battle, and I’m sorry for not being with you now or after the war has finished._

_Your safety and survival are most important to me, Draco. I have not been the mother I should have been to you. You must understand that you are the best thing to happen in my life. Your father and I have made many mistakes and sacrifices in our lives that we are not proud of; the one thing we are proud of is you._

_I know I have failed in keeping you safe. You should not have been put in such a position that you were. Please understand that it is not your fault. I am weak and scared, and I should have stood up to your father and Voldemort._

_I asked Severus to protect you, and he has ensured us that you are, in fact, safe and sound. I want you to know that I love you. Please, as my last request, start your life over. Do not follow in our footsteps, Draco; you know better than what we do._

_A small fortune that is not part of your father’s estate is left for you in Gringotts, vault 489. This money was bestowed upon me before your father and I were together, and it now belongs to you. Make sure you use it wisely._

_I must go now my son, please forgive me._

_Your Mother,_

_Narcissa_

Hermione finished reading the letter; tears fell down her face as her heart ached for Draco. She folded the letter back up and placed it back into its envelope. She looked up and Ginny and Harry and saw that they too had shed a few tears.

Draco had, at some point, left his seat and was now standing near the railing looking out over the gardens.

“Draco?” Hermione asked

Draco turned around to face Hermione, wiping a tear from his cheek. “Please,” Draco began “Read the next letter.”

Hermione nodded and picked up the second letter. She opened the envelope and unfolded the letter, as she did; a photo fell out. Hermione picked the picture up and stared in disbelief. The image was of a much younger looking Lucius and Narcissa, holding a baby, which no doubt, was Draco. Lucius and Narcissa seemed so happy; Hermione thought as she saw Lucius bend down and kiss his son.

Hermione then placed the picture down on the table and began to read the letter aloud once again.

_Draco,_

_I will be fighting alongside your mother and Voldemort. We must do this as I have destroyed our family long enough. I wish I could turn back the hands of time, to correct all my wrongs._

_If I knew long ago that things were going to turn out this way, I would never have joined forces with Voldemort. Do not get me wrong, the vision that Voldemort once had, I still strongly believe in, however, over time Voldemort’s power grew and his greed became overwhelming. This was when things began to change for the worst._

_By this time, I had no choice but to follow, as you know, no-one leaves Voldemort. When your mother gave birth to you, it was the happiest moment of my life. The photo I have left with this letter is the memory I hold on to dearly._

_Sadly, I failed you and your mother. I cannot express the sorrow I have felt all these years. It was not meant to be this way Draco, it was not meant to be this way. Do not follow the beliefs that I have taught you. Potter has the upper hand in this last battle, and he will win. You will wake one day in a new world, and you must start over. Begin a new life with your own views and lead the life, I should have given you._

_We were not meant to hate nor kill Muggle born people. We were to simply keep the pure bloodline from dying out. However, Voldemort decided that Muggle born people had no right to be in our world and that they were threatening our way of life and must be eliminated. It was not meant to be this way Draco, it was not meant to be this way. Please remember that._

_I must go now, my son. I may never have expressed this to you before, but I do love you._

_L. Malfoy_

Hermione put the letter down, and looked back at the picture that lay beside it on the table. Fresh tears sprang to her eyes as she saw what should have been a happy family. Ginny was sniffling again; Harry had an arm around her for comfort and Draco stood with his head bent down low as he fought the emotions that were stirring once again inside his heart.

Hermione finally lifted her eyes to look at Draco; she could see him struggling back against his emotions. She rose from her seat and walked over to where Draco stood.

“It’s okay.” Hermione whispered to him as she took his hands in hers.

Draco lifted his head slightly and locked his eyes on Hermione’s. At that moment, he felt the same jolt of energy flow through him. He wanted to kiss her and hold her, to take comfort in her embrace; however, his story was not yet finished. Draco gently squeezed Hermione’s hands with his then led her back to the table.

As they both took their seats again, Draco withdrew his wand from his robes and muttered a few words. The empty dishes were gone in an instant, and a box of tissues appeared, to which Hermione and Ginny were grateful for. Without needing any prompting, Draco finished telling his story.

“Once I had finished reading those letters I became angry once again. I felt a rage grow inside of me that I never thought I could ever feel. In a few paragraphs, my parents apologised and told me they loved me. I hated them more then, for not ever telling me when they were alive. All those years that I was here, at the cottage, I never knew that they cared.”

“After my rage had subsided, I read the letters for a second time. It was then that I knew what I should do. I apparated straight to the Ministry and turned myself over. My parents were right. I needed to start over. In order for me to do this, I had to give myself up for my past misgivings.”

“For reasons I still don’t know, the Minister wished to speak to me alone. I told him briefly, what I have just told you and showed him the letters. Most of the time that I spent with the Minister, he was either in deep thought or asking me questions he already knew the answers to. After what seemed like hours, he finally told me I was simply a victim of unfortunate circumstances, and it was not my fault what happened with Dumbledore.”

“I was shocked, but I also wanted to try to make up for my past. I told the Minister that I was happy to hand over the Malfoy estate so he could search for any information my father may have had. Perhaps if the Ministry had a glimpse into the life of a Death Eater, maybe something can be put into place if ever the dark side should once again rise.”

“The Minister seemed pleased with that idea and told me I was excused. Not long after that night, I purchased the Inn with the money my mother had left behind for me. I considered staying here permanently; however, I still would not be at peace with the Magical world, _my_ world.”

“So I returned, I asked the Minister for a position at the Ministry, he allowed me to be on the investigating team that are going through my father’s belongings. He felt that I may be of some use as to where certain things came from and what they were used for.”

“I have been trying to prove myself from that day onwards that I have changed and that I am no longer my father’s Son.” Draco finished then looked at Hermione.

Hermione sat in silence for a while, absorbing all this new information in her head. Draco waited patiently for Hermione to say something, or even just to look at him. When minutes passed and no one said anything, Draco’s heart fell to the floor; he felt crushed and thought that once he told of his past, that Hermione would see that he had clearly changed.

“Well,” Draco finally said as he once again struggled against his emotions and rose from his seat. “I think it’s time to retire for the evening.” With that said, he gathered his letters and his picture from off the table and walked back into the cottage.

“Hermione?” Ginny called out to her friend. Hermione looked across the table to where Ginny sat. “I believe you got your answers. He’s waiting for you.” Ginny urged Hermione to follow Draco.

Without needing any more encouragement, Hermione leapt from her seat and went after Draco. She made her way through the cottage looking for where Draco had gone. She heard a click and looked down the hall.

Hermione still had no idea what to say as she approached Draco’s room; she gathered her thoughts and knocked on his door.

“Come in.” She heard Draco call out then Hermione entered his room. She closed the door behind her as she scanned the room. She saw Draco standing by his window with his back to her.

“Draco?” She said trying to get his attention. When he did not attempt to acknowledge her presence, she began to approach him. As she drew nearer to Draco, she noticed the moonlight had captured his face in a slight glow. His features somehow looked softer, more real. “Angelic,” She thought, remembering the words of his mother.

Once she stood beside him, she looked up at him. Draco still stood silently looking out the window. Hermione could see him fighting the emotions he felt, then without a thought, she reached up with her hand and placed it on his arm. Her touch seemed to bring Draco back to reality, as he turned and finally looked at Hermione.

Their eyes met, and Hermione could feel that amazing energy begin to bubble up inside her once again. Draco searched Hermione’s face, looking for some kind of understanding.

“It’s okay.” Hermione said, breaking the silence. Draco’s anguish finally broke through his walls and Hermione saw the tears that now fell from his face. “It’s okay.” She said again as she pulled Draco down to her and embraced him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, and she felt his arms wind their way around her waist as he pulled her in tight. Then for the first time, Draco cried, releasing all the pain he had been holding back. Hermione just held him allowing him to take comfort in her arms.


	20. A Declaration of Love in the Rain

The sun was shining bright, birds were singing and Hermione began to stir. As she opened her eyes and blinked out the sleepiness, she remembered Draco’s confessions the previous night.

She wasn’t sure, when they had fallen asleep on his bed, but she knew the arm she felt around her waist and the body snuggled up behind her was Draco. Hermione smiled to herself and closed her eyes again as she snuggled up closer to him. After a while, she sighed and carefully lifted Draco’s arm and slid out of the bed, she then realised that they were still dressed in the clothes they wore the day before.

Hermione carefully and quietly made her way to the door and slipped out of the room, as she glanced at Draco’s sleeping form, she smiled again thinking at how peaceful he looked, and then she closed his door and headed for her own room.

After a nice long hot shower and a fresh set of clothes, Hermione emerged from her room and made her way to the kitchen. The cottage seemed so quiet and she wondered where Ginny and Harry were. As she entered the kitchen, her thoughts were answered as she saw a note on the bench. Ginny had said that her and Harry were out for the day in a Muggle town not far from the Inn, and wanted to leave her and Draco alone for a while.

Hermione felt grateful that Ginny understood her so well. She then began to search for something to make for breakfast when she heard a shower turn on. She knew that Draco was awake, and then an idea came to her mind as she kept looking through the cupboards and picking a few things out.

After a while, Hermione had all she needed, and sat down at the dining table with a coffee and waited for Draco.

“What’s all of this?” Draco asked as he entered the dining room.

“Oh,” Hermione began and smiled at him. “I thought you could take me out on that second date you promised.”

“Okay, but its half past eight in the morning, Hermione. You have packed a picnic basket?” Draco replied.

“Yes, I thought you could take me into the gardens and we could sit, eat and talk.” Hermione stated, quite pleased with herself.

Draco laughed and shook his head. _A breakfast picnic! Well this is a first._ Draco thought.

“Okay.” Draco said as he picked up the basket that Hermione had prepared and took her hand to help her up out of her chair. “Let’s go.”

Draco kept hold of her hand as he led her outside into the gardens, they walked in silence for a while, and then Draco led Hermione out through a gate that Hermione hadn’t noticed before.

Once they walked through the gates, Hermione let out a gasp as she took in the sight before her. They were standing at the top of a set of stone steps, and from this height, they overlooked a huge maze garden. Hermione could see the hedges that made the maze walls and could see bits of different colours around the maze; she assumed they were the colours of all the different flowers the garden contained.

“It’s beautiful.” Hermione finally said as she looked at Draco.

Draco simply smiled at her then replied. “Not as beautiful as you.”

Hermione blushed at his last statement, and then Draco led her down the stone steps, and entered the maze. He led her through the maze and Hermione saw all different coloured roses as they made their way through. Once they reached their destination, Hermione gasped once again. They were in the middle of the maze and right in front of her stood a huge fountain.

As Hermione walked around the fountain, Draco set up their picnic and sat down on the blanket. Once Hermione reached him, she joined Draco on the blanket and smiled at him.

“I can’t believe this is all here.” She said as she started to make something to eat

“I found this place the day I decided to stay here. I came here a lot after that, sometimes just to think, other times to get away from everyone.” Draco said as he looked over at Hermione. He blinked a few times as he saw her holding a plate of hot bacon and eggs on toast, then looked at her puzzled.

Rolling her eyes, Hermione waved the hand that held her wand and said, “I am a witch, you know?” and both Hermione and Draco laughed as Draco took his plate gratefully.

They both sat in silence, enjoying their breakfast and the sight and sounds of the garden and the splashing of the water from the fountain. Once they were both finished, Draco took out his wand and with a flick; their dishes were cleaned and packed back into the basket. Hermione and Draco looked at each other, not knowing what to say.

Draco then stood up holding out his hand for Hermione. She took his hand and allowed him to help her up. She began to say something but Draco put his fingers of his free hand to her lips to silence her. He then led her over to the fountain and turned her to face it. He was standing close behind her, and he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close to him. Hermione could feel her heart leap at their closeness and allowed herself to relax in his arms. She could feel his breath down her neck as he whispered in her ear.

“If you look down into the water, you’ll see the coins I used to flip in there. I used this fountain as a wishing well. I always wished for the same thing. I never knew then that my wish would come true.” Draco finished.

Hermione looked down into the water, and sure enough, there were coins scattered everywhere. She smiled to herself thinking that it was a trait that she never knew he had.

“What did you wish for?” She asked

“I wished that someday I would have someone to hold and to love. Someone who would keep me company and end the loneliness I had always felt. Right now, I’m holding that someone who I love.” He whispered back into her ear.

Hermione felt tears instantly form in her eyes; she turned herself around to face Draco, and looked into his eyes. As he stared back at her, Hermione could see that he was telling her the truth. Without a word, she leaned up and pressed her lips to his. Their kiss was soft and sweet, and then she felt that same familiar feeling stirring inside of her. She knew he was feeling the same as their kiss deepened.

After what seemed like hours, Hermione pulled out of their kiss. They were both breathless and she could feel Draco trembling as he was still holding her in an embrace. A low rumble of thunder sounded out from the sky and both Draco and Hermione looked up at the dark clouds that had moved over them.

“We should head back.” Hermione said, still a little breathless.

Draco looked back at Hermione, refusing to let her go. “I love you, Hermione. I don’t know exactly what happens whenever I’m close to you or when we kiss, but it’s like some other force is telling me that this is right. Please, please tell me how you feel.” Draco pleaded.

A light sprinkle of rain now began to fall from the heavens above; Hermione stared at Draco in disbelief. She heard him confess his love for her and that same feeling she felt. The rain began to fall a bit harder now and Hermione blinked a few times to fend back the water splashing into her eyes.

“I really think it’s time to go.” Hermione finally said and she began to unwrap Draco’s arms from around her waist. “We had better get out of this rain before we catch a cold.”

“Tell me how you feel.” Draco stated again, holding onto her tighter so she couldn’t go.

“Draco, the rain -” Hermione began to protest, but Draco cut her off.

“Screw the rain, Hermione. Tell me how you _feel_!” Draco pleaded, his voice slightly raised.

Hermione’s heart was beating too fast and her head was spinning. Tears fell from her eyes and mingled with the drops of rain falling down her cheeks. She’d been holding back on her feelings for so long that she found it almost impossible to actually admit them.

“Please.” Draco pleaded again.

Hermione looked deep into Draco’s eyes, then finally whispered “I love you, Draco Malfoy.”

Upon hearing the words he so needed to hear, Draco crushed his lips once again to Hermione’s. This kiss was different though; this kiss was deeper, more passionate, more needing.

Without knowing it, they were slowly undressing each other; they were taken over by a deeper need. As their lips remained locked, and their tongues explored each other’s mouths, their hands peeled away the fabric that stuck to their wet bodies.

Hermione finally was touching Draco’s skin, her hands ran over his back, feeling every bump and curve she could, as her hands reached up to his neck she allowed her hands to roam down his chest. She let out a low moan as her hands explored his perfectly sculptured body. As her hands reached his belt, she began to unfasten its hold on his pants.

Draco broke their kiss, and began to place light kisses down her neck. He felt her pushing him backwards, moving them back to where the blanket was still lying on the ground, cold and wet. Uncaring about the rain now, Draco leaned down to lay on the blanket pulling Hermione down on top of him. Their mouths met again as they shed the last pieces of clothing they had, their bodies pressed together, and their hands exploring the feel of each other’s bare skin.

Draco expertly rolled Hermione so that she was underneath him; loving the way she felt in his hands. Hermione let out another moan of pleasure as she broke their kiss this time. Her lips tasted and kissed any part of his skin she could reach, loving the taste of him mixed with the wetness of the rain.

Once Draco entered her, they both let out a gasp, they were now united in the most intimate way two people could be, and they both felt that energy change. They both could feel, what can only be described as, an invisible thread winding its way around their bodies, bonding them together.

As their bodies rocked together out in the rain, lost in their building climaxes, their love being declared to one another, they were oblivious to their surroundings. They were both unaware of the eyes that were watching them.


	21. Prophocies and Amulets

“ ** _Why do you keep doing this to me_**?” The red headed man yelled as he picked the crystal orb up from out of her hands and threw it hard against the rocky walls of the cave. The orb shattered into pieces, and she sighed at the loss of another orb.

“Because you need to know the importance of what’s to come.” She replied

“The importance of what? Of hurting the only woman, I have ever loved? To drive her into the arms of another man and now into his…bed?” Ron didn’t know what to call the last image he saw. His Hermione never was that brazen.

He looked over at the woman who stood before him; she was still looking at the shattered orb with a sad look on her face. Ron studied her again; she was quite tall, her pale white skin seemed to have an eerie golden glow, her hair was dead straight, black and long, her big, round, amber coloured eyes reminded him of a cat.

She finally lifted her eyes to look at Ron. She felt sorry for him, but time was running out, and she needed him to understand. She had a job to do, the fate of the world was in her hands, and she could not do what needed to be done alone.

“You were never meant to be with her, Ron. Hermione’s destiny was written before she was even born. However, you do love her, which makes your task particularly hard. You were only meant to help her, guide her and protect her.” The woman replied.

“You keep telling me that over and over and I still don’t understand.” Ron said as he placed his hands over his face and sat down on the edge of a rock.

With another sad sigh, the woman sat down beside Ron. “I cannot tell you everything, it’s not yet time for all to be revealed. What I can tell you is this,” Ron lifted his head from his hands as he realised that he was about to get some answers finally and paid attention to what the woman was saying.

“Since time began, prophecies were made for every soul that is born. I’m sure you know this. What is not as commonly known is that some prophecies are pre written. Meaning that when a particular soul is born his or her destiny is already set, they have no choice but to follow what fate has bestowed upon them. Hermione, Draco, You and your sister Ginny all have pre written destinies.” The woman finished.

“What?” Ron stared at her in disbelief. “What does our prophecy say then?”

“I can’t tell you anyone else’s but your own. I more or less have on numerous occasions. You are Hermione’s protector. However, the world turned upside down when Voldemort became greedy. He was not meant to rise to such power. Yes, he was meant to be evil, but not as power hungry as he became. Voldemort was given too much power; sadly, I was unable to stop that from happening.” The woman sighed sadly once again and looked away from Ron.

‘Who are you?” Ron asked, still unsure whether he should believe this woman or not.

“I am Cassiel, Mother and Protector of the Earth. I am immortal and exist on a higher plane. However, given these certain circumstances, I have returned once more to Earth as a human to correct the wrongs that have been done.” Cassiel looked at Ron now, and she cupped her hand under Ron’s chin and made him look at her before she continued.

“I need your help Ron. Your love for Hermione is something that can help you if you allow your destiny to take its natural course. If you keep fighting it, it will only destroy you and the world too. “She was now pleading with Ron.

Ron again stared at Cassiel, trying to absorb everything she had just told him. He lifted his head away from her hands and stood up, then began pacing in front of her. He couldn’t believe anything that was being said, how could he? Finally, he stopped and looked at Cassiel again.

“You said that if I fight my destiny, I will destroy myself and the world, how so?” He asked.

Cassiel had another sad look on her face, and Ron was beginning to think that she was in need of some serious therapy.

“If you fight your destiny and take the path that was not intended for you, at some point, you are killed for your soul to be reborn. If that happens, the prophecies are broken, and the time needed for the new soul to mature, takes too long. Therefore, the world is thrown out of balance, more so then it is now.”

“There is time to correct the balance at this point in time, but if anything goes wrong, then the balance is to far thrown to correct and the world goes into chaos. Haven’t you noticed it yet? The difference in the world since Voldemort was killed?” Cassiel asked Ron and he looked at her dumbfounded.

Seeing that Ron didn’t understand, Cassiel kept speaking. “Since Voldemort died the world has become peaceful, too peaceful. In a balanced world, there is crime, heartache, and pain. Right now, everyone is happy, safe and peaceful. There hasn’t been much crime at all. Soon enough the peace will come to an end and the dark will rise again, but worse then what you have already seen.”  Cassiel stopped to see if Ron understood now.

“So then why can’t you change things? You said that you are the Mother and Protector of Earth, so do your job. Fix the balance,” Ron stated

Cassiel shook her head and sighed once again. “I wish I could, but I have no control over the balance. Other people control that, but that is the exact problem. They are not doing their part.” Cassiel replied.

“Well why aren’t they?” Ron asked baffled.

“At this point in time, I can’t answer that. I have already revealed too much too soon. I again ask for your help Ron. Please help me?” Cassiel pleaded once again.

Ron stood staring at Cassiel for a while, thinking everything over. He knew there was no way he could go back to his old life now. Letting out a sigh, he gave in. “Okay, I’ll help you. What do you need me to do?” He asked.

For the first time Cassiel smiled, she stood up and walked over to Ron, holding a piece of parchment and handing it to Ron. “I need you to find these.” She said as Ron took the parchment and looked at what was written on it.

“What are they?” He asked, curious at the sketches he was looking at.

“They are amulets. They are the key to the prophecies. I need you to find them for me. The details are written down underneath the sketches as to where they were last seen.” Cassiel said

Ron nodded as he read the details, and then he looked concerned. “Why can’t you go in search of them? Why do I need to find them?” He asked

“I cannot touch the amulets, only the protector can, and you are now the protector of them.” Cassiel replied.

Ron looked at her, and then nodded. He folded the parchment up and put it in his back jeans pocket. “I will leave now. If I find them, what do I do then?”

“Once you have them, I’ll know and you meet me back here for the next step.” Cassiel said

Again, Ron nodded then he turned and left the cave. Cassiel watched Ron leave and whispered a small prayer for him. “Be safe, Ron.” She whispered, then left the cave and headed back to her place in the shadows to watch over Hermione, Draco and Ginny.


	22. Snape's Return and New Couples

He slipped out of the shadows of the maze without a trace. He was not normally a Peeping Tom, but he was surprised to watch the union take place when it was supposed to happen much earlier.

He heard the couple shriek and laugh as they made their way back to the cottage, and a frown sat firmly on his face. _Why was their union only just taking place?_ He asked himself for the hundredth time. _What has been happening since I was gone?_ The man was lost in his own thoughts and didn’t notice the golden glow slide back into the shadows.

Cassiel felt his presence before she could see him, a presence she had not felt in over twenty five years. She closed her eyes and honed in on his essence, once she found where he was, she opened her eyes and moved towards the direction he was heading. She was close, she could feel it. Every nerve ending she had was on fire, a feeling she never thought she’d feel again.

As she drew nearer to him, he also felt the same feeling. The man gasped in shock, he resigned to the fact that he would never feel her essence again. He slowly turned around and there she stood. Every part of her was the same. Her hair, her eyes, her skin, everything was just as it looked all those years ago.

“Am I dreaming?” The man asked

“No my love, I am here.” Cassiel replied.

“How? Why?” He asked, still stunned.

“I needed to return to right what has gone wrong.” Cassiel said. “Why are you here though, what happened to the plan?” Cassiel asked looking at the man she was supposed to spend the rest of her mortal life with.

“I have been roaming the world, going from one hiding place to another so as not to get caught. I’m still wanted for murder. The fertility plant will not grow until the prophecy is fulfilled, I need it to finalise the potion, however, considering Draco and Hermione have only just united today, I can see it won’t be long now. I’m not sure why it has taken so long though; they should have united years ago. What happened?” He asked as he stepped toward Cassiel, he stood so close to her now that he could feel her body heat radiate off her onto him. He briefly closed his eyes, savouring the moment, as he never dreamed of feeling it again.

Cassiel smiled up at him before speaking, “The balance has been thrown. Ron Weasley was not meant to fall in love with Hermione. Now I need to oversee that the prophecy is put back on track.”

The man was only half listening to her, he was too captivated in her beauty, and he ran a finger across her cheek, smiling as he felt that familiar jolt flow through him. He leaned down and placed his lips on hers. Cassiel responded to his kiss, at first it was soft and sweet, then the kiss deepened to a much more passionate one.

Cassiel broke the kiss once she realised what she was doing. All those old mortal feelings were returning to her and she was not here for this.

“Severus, you must go now.” She said turning away from him so she couldn’t see him. “I’ll be returning home once things are put right. You know we can never be together, that life is gone.” She said and hated the feeling of her heart breaking again.

Severus Snape sighed; he knew that this was not meant to be. It was a life given up on many years ago for the greater good. Without a word, he turned and left Cassiel for the second time in his life.

~~*~~

Draco and Hermione were still laughing as they entered the cottage, they were soaked from head to toe.

“Harry, Ginny, are you back yet?” Hermione shouted out once she stepped back into the cottage. Only silence greeted her back and she knew they had not returned.

“Hermione, do you plan on moving out of the doorway or do I get to stand here out in the rain all day?” Draco said from close behind her.

“Oh, sorry.” Hermione replied laughing once again and stepping aside to allow Draco to enter. Once inside, Draco took Hermione by the hand and led her towards his room.

“Draco, I need a shower, where do you think your taking me?” Hermione asked

“I need a shower too, in case you haven’t noticed, and I thought we could both have one together.” Draco replied with a smirk on his face.

Hermione had not seen that smirk since their days at Hogwarts and knew that somewhere deep inside that part of him will never go away.

“Fine, but hurry up, I’m freezing in these wet clothes.” Hermione said through chattering teeth.

Draco laughed and pulled Hermione into his arms and kissed her. They walked into his room and headed for the bathroom. Hermione was surprised by the size of Draco’s bathroom; however, she smiled once she realised why he had offered her to share his shower.

Draco walked over towards the shower and began to turn the taps on, while he was busy with that, Hermione began to undress, watching Draco test the water with his hands. The shower was quite large and has two showerheads, one on each end of the shower. Once the water was flowing the two streams of water met in the middle before falling down to the marbled floor.

“So are you...” Draco began to say as he turned back to Hermione and noticed that she had already undressed. “…ready?” he finished his sentence, but was unable to take his eyes off her.

Hermione blushed slightly, feeling a little self-conscious of herself. She stepped over to Draco and began to take off his clothes, and then before she knew it he was kissing her again, helping her to undress himself. Their kiss and movements were passionate but needing. Draco then slightly lifted Hermione up and stepped into the shower, never breaking their kiss as he went.

Once Hermione felt the warmth of the water splash over her head and down her body, she let out a moan, which only encouraged Draco further. Hermione smiled through their kiss as she could feel Draco’s arousal once again.

She broke their kiss and looked up at Draco, “I really like this shower.” She said before pulling him back down for another kiss and let their passion and desire take over them.

It was sometime later before they emerged from the shower and Hermione wrapped a towel around her, as she had to return next door to her room to change. She peeked out through Draco’s door and she couldn’t hear any voices so she knew Harry and Ginny still had not returned and it was safe to return to her room.

Once safely inside, Hermione closed her door behind her and began to find something to wear. She smiled to herself as she thought over what had taken place over the last few hours. She really was in love with Draco; she never felt such a deep connection to someone before, not even with Ron. Her thoughts drifted back to Hogwarts again; they hated each other so much then.

As Hermione was pulling the top over her head, she suddenly stopped and sat down on the foot of her bed. “Could I have loved him even back then?” She asked herself. Her brain filtered through all her memories of them arguing and throwing insults at each other. She closed her eyes and tried to place herself back in that time.

She then let out a gasp of shock and covered her mouth as the realisation sunk in. All those times that they were arguing and fighting, she had felt that same energy. Only back then, she thought it was just her anger that made her feel that way, now she realised that their connection was always there; she just never knew what it really was.

“Hermione, are you hungry?” Draco shouted out to her, breaking her out of her thoughts.

“Yes, actually, I am.” She shouted back and quickly dressed herself and headed back to Draco’s bathroom. Their clothes were still scattered on the floor and she picked them up, once she found her wand she took it out. She then held her wand to the pile of wet clothes in her arms and with a flick, their clothes were dry and clean then with another flick, the clothes had disappeared. Hermione had one last thing to do before joining Draco, she pointed her wand at her hair and with a few mumbled words, and her hair was dry and pulled up into a ponytail.

Hermione made her way out into the kitchen and saw that Draco had prepared a buffet style lunch. There were a variety of cold meats, bread rolls, salads and drinks.

“Wow! You go all out don’t you?” Hermione said with a smile.

“Only the best, for the best.” Draco replied with a wink.

Hermione and Draco began to dig into the food, conversed lightly while eating, and didn’t notice Harry and Ginny return.

Ginny turned to Harry when they entered the cottage and put a finger to her lips. “Shhh.” She hushed him and quietly made her way to the kitchen, but hiding behind a wall so she could spy.

Ginny watched with a smile on her face as she saw Hermione and Draco talking and laughing then she squealed with excitement when she saw Draco lean over the counter and kiss Hermione on the lips.

“Ahem!” Harry cleared his throat to announce their presence, which made Draco, Hermione, and Ginny all jump. Draco and Hermione seemed shocked; however, Ginny couldn’t hold back her excitement.

“I knew you two would get together! Does this mean you two are a couple now?” Ginny asked with excitement in her voice.

Hermione looked to Draco with a raised brow, and Draco smirked once again at Hermione before turning to Ginny and saying, “Yes, we are couple.”

Ginny jumped up and down with excitement and clapped her hands then she ran over to Hermione and gave her a huge hug. Harry and Draco laughed at the sight and Hermione blushed as she hugged her friend back, but smiled as she realised that Draco was serious about her.


	23. Christmas Cheer

Hiding in the shadows was like second nature to Ron these days. He had been back a week, the amulets safe in his robe pockets with his wand. Ron knew he should have gone to see Cassiel straight away; however, his time away gave him time to think about everything that has been happening in his life these last few months.

Hermione was his life; he was elated the day she finally agreed to go out on a date with him, and then after the war, she stayed right by his side. He always felt like he could conquer the world with Hermione by his side.

Now, as he looked through her front window, he can see how happy she is without him. Draco, Harry and Ginny were all helping Hermione decorate a Christmas tree. Ron watched Hermione frown, then yell something at Draco for putting the wrong decoration in the wrong place.

Ron half smiled at that as he remembered Hermione teaching him how to decorate their first tree. She has a method, and you must always use her method. Ron smile faded from his face; he missed her, and this would be their first Christmas apart from each other. Ron placed his right hand into his robe pockets and held onto the amulets. He was about to step out of the shadows when he heard someone speak from behind him.

“You’re not thinking of doing what I think you’re going to do, are you?” Ron turned around to see Cassiel standing behind him.

“I need to apologise to her, to tell her that I miss her.” Ron replied without hesitation.

“Now is not the time Ron. I promise you that the time will come, and you will be able to speak to her. Right now, I need to know if you succeeded.” Cassiel asked

“The Amulets? I have them, though I still don’t get why you couldn’t get them. It’s not as if it was hard. The old bat in the Desert was mental, and she practically threw the Amulet at me and the same with the nutter in Antarctica. She was worse. She threw the Amulet in the water; I tried the Accio spell, but for some reason my wand wouldn’t work, so I had to dive into the water to find it. Nearly died from how cold it was.” Ron finished then when he heard Cassiel laugh, his jaw dropped in shock. It was the first time he heard her laugh or ever show any happy emotions.

When Cassiel had recovered from her laughter, she looked at Ron in a new light. He had changed. “No Magic can touch the Amulets. They are protected by something far more powerful then you can imagine. Now we must go. I believe you know Minerva McGonagall; she is awaiting our arrival at Hogwarts.”

“You know Professor McGonagall?” Ron gasped

“Yes, now we must go.” Cassiel held out her hand; Ron took it, and without a sound, they were gone.

~~*~~

The Christmas tree was just about done. Draco, Ginny and Harry were exhausted; they had never spent three long hours decorating a Christmas tree. Hermione was the only excited one at the moment.

“Okay, just one last touch!” Hermione smiled and ran out of the living room to her room.

Draco groaned when she was out of sight. “I miss house elves. I never had to do this before.”

Ginny laughed, “What about your time at the cottage?”

“The Inn Keepers always had the tree’s ready.” Draco shrugged.

Ginny shook her head a laughed, Harry simply flopped himself down on the lounge and rested his head on the back of the chair. At that moment, Hermione came bustling back into the room with a small package. All eyes were on her, waiting to see what she had next to do to the tree.

“All right,” Hermione began. “I have something in this box for each of us.” Hermione proceeded to open the package she had and pulled out smaller black boxes and handed them out to each of them. “Now don’t open them just yet.” Hermione continued.

“We all seem to have a new life, a new path that we’re following.” Hermione stopped speaking for a moment and looked at Draco, their eyes connected and they both felt that all too familiar energy inside them, however, Hermione continued her prepared speech.

“I never thought I would find love with someone who I once called my enemy, and I do love you Draco, more than I can ever say or express.” Hermione smiled, and a tear threatened to fall down her cheek.

Draco smiled back at Hermione; his past frustration vanished at her words and their meaning. “I love you too.” He replied and placed a soft small kiss on her lips.

Hermione then turned to Harry, who was still seated on the lounge. “Harry, we have been through so much over the years, and yet here you are. You also have opened my eyes to a world that changed right before me and made me see that people can change. You’ve always been the best friend anyone could ever ask for.” Hermione gave Harry a smile and this time her tears fell from her eyes and seeing that Harry seemed uncomfortable, she quickly turned to Ginny.

“Ginny, you’ve always been the little sister I never had and also one of my best friends. I know that this will be our first Christmas without Ron and as the days pass, I have come to realise that I’m not angry with him anymore. I miss him, and I just wish we could find him. I know that you don’t like talking about him because of me, but he is your brother, and I know you’re not happy without your family. It’s Christmas, and we all deserve to be with our families.” Hermione finished, and Ginny was silently crying and then threw her arms around Hermione in a bone-crunching hug.

“Thank you.” Ginny whispered into Hermione’s ear.

Once the girls had composed themselves, Hermione stood back to address everyone once again. “So what are in these little black boxes?” Hermione smiled again, held up her box, and gently shook it. “As I said to Ginny, family is important at this time of the year."

"When I was little, my parents used to buy me something new every year to add to our Christmas tree. I wanted to start this tradition with us four, a way for us to celebrate the holiday as a family together. So you may now open your boxes.” Hermione finished and waited for everyone to open his or her box.

Draco opened his box and found a crystal serpent with emerald eyes hanging from a silver thread. He carefully picked it up from out of the box, held it up, and looked at Hermione with a questioning look.

“Your Slytherin past.” Hermione answered when she saw the look on Draco’s face.

“I don’t understand though. I’m not that person anymore, you know that.” Draco again stared at Hermione looking confused.

“True, you have changed, but in some ways, you will always be that boy. The proud Slytherin and son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. There are parts of your past I’m sure you’re not proud of, but your past is still a huge part of who you are today, and you shouldn’t forget that.” Hermione finished and smiled at Draco.

After a moment of pondering what Hermione had said, Draco finally smiled back at her. He understood now; he may be a changed person, but deep down inside he still is the same person he was all those years ago and Hermione understood that about him. Draco then found a place on the tree and placed his serpent on a spare branch where a green light would flash behind it.

Harry’s gift needed no explanation. He held up a snitch with a clear crystal ball with golden wings. Harry beamed at Hermione, besides Ginny, Quidditch is his other passion in life. Harry picked his place on the tree and placed the snitch on it.

Ginny held up her gift and tried hard not to laugh. “A baby?”

Hermione giggled at her friend. “Yes, you and Harry will be married soon, so I’m sure you know what’s bound to follow.”

Ginny blushed, but gave her friend a smile, once Ginny had found a place on the tree for her gift, Draco, Harry and Ginny looked at Hermione to find out what she had in her box. Hermione inhaled a deep breath as she opened her box. With shaking hands, she lifted up her ornament. Three pairs of eyes looked at her confused especially Draco’s. Hermione cleared her throat and began to explain.

“I guess this isn’t the most conventional way to be doing this, though, one day, I’d really like to be married and settled.” Hermione was saying as she placed her ornament on the tree, close to where Draco’s serpent hung. “I know things seem to be moving fast these days,” Hermione quickly continued before she lost her nerves. “And if this is too much for you,” Hermione turned towards Draco and looked up at him. “I’ll understand.”

Ginny gasped in shock, and her hands flew to cover her mouth, Harry looked stunned and just stared at Hermione and Draco looked back at Hermione with absolute wonder and surprise in his eyes.

Draco lifted his eyes away from Hermione’s to the little Bride and Groom Hermione had just placed on the tree, then back to Hermione.

“Are you asking me to marry you?” Draco finally asked

“Yes.” Was all Hermione could manage to answer. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she wasn’t sure what Draco’s reaction would be. They had only been together for a couple of months, but in her heart, she knew with every fibre of her being that this is what she truly wanted.

Draco opened his mouth to speak, but couldn’t find any words to say, so he closed his mouth again and searched Hermione’s face for some kind of answer that his brain wouldn’t let him find.

~~*~~

 ** _Meanwhile_** …Cassiel and Ron stood outside of the grand gates of Hogwarts. Minerva was waiting there for them.

“Come, we’ve been waiting.” Minerva said and opened the gates to allow Cassiel and Ron to enter the grounds.


	24. The Lost Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HBP comes into play big time in this chapter. I have put in my own ideas as to why and what is to happen, though this, in no way, makes it anywhere near the truth. This is just simply my version. (This was written before DH and only a few months after HBP's release - I really wished this chapter was closer to the truth.)

After all these years, Hogwarts still managed to make Ron feel like he was at home. He had so many wonderful memories held within the castle walls; however, he also had the worst of memories too. Before Ron knew where they were going he found himself standing in his old potions classroom.

The dimly lit dungeon made no difference to what Ron could see. Ron’s jaw dropped, and his eyes grew wide in shock.

“Bloody Hell!” Ron exclaimed as he began to back away from the scene before him.

Cassiel took a firm hold of Ron’s arm as she saw his shock. “Calm down, Ron.” Cassiel whispered, but she still had a sound, firm tone in her voice.

“I promise you everything is fine.” Cassiel tried to soothe Ron, but he just stood against the back wall of the dungeon and remained silent.

He darted his eyes around the room, trying to understand what was going on around him, the people, the whispered tones he could hear, but no matter how hard he tried; his eyes always landed on the white marble tomb that was in the middle of the room.

From out of the corner that, Ron couldn’t see properly due to the dim lighting, swept in a tall man with his black robes billowing around him. His long greasy black hair and long beak nose could not belong to anyone other than Severus Snape. Cassiel could hear Ron mutter obscenities from behind her, and she smiled, she knew only too well how Snape managed to get on the wrong side of people.

Once Snape was standing before the tomb, the room fell silent, and all eyes were diverted on him.

“Minister, Minerva, and other members of the Order, I thank you for your time and patience. As you have no doubt heard, I am awakening Dumbledore from his rather long, unnecessary, sleep.” With his last words, Snape looked towards Ron and narrowed his eyes at him.

Snape then pulled out a bottle from his robe pocket, as he uncorked the bottle; a small burst of light came from the opening. With his wand in his other hand, Snape pointed it over the tomb and muttered a few words.

A scrapping noise could be heard echoing around the dungeon walls, and Ron narrowed his eyes in the darkness of the room to see what was happening. A part of the tomb was opening up. Once the scraping sound had ceased, Snape raised the bottle over the part that had opened and closed his eyes as his face tilted up towards the roof.

_“The gift of life that I once stole,_

_I now replace and make him whole._

_Years of memories to be told,_

_Held within this bottle that I hold._

_The breath of life I give to thee,_

_It is my will, so shall it be.”_

With the last of the incantation, that Snape had recited; he tipped the bottle over and poured it into the opened part of the tomb. Once the bottle was empty, Snape stood back from the tomb. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen, then just when Ron was about to say something, a puff of white smoke began to fill the room.

Ron gasped as he could see through the smoke, white flames flickering from the tomb. As the flames leaped higher, a bright pure white light beamed from the tomb, causing everyone on the room to gasp and cover their eyes from the blinding light.

When the light faded, and the smoke cleared, the room fell silent once again. Where the tomb once stood, Dumbledore’s body now lay across a wooden table. Ron couldn’t move nor speak; he could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest, as he stared at the body.

After a few moments, a loud, long gasp of breath came from Dumbledore and the room erupted in applause. Cassiel moved forward and placed her hands on Dumbledore’s chest; she muttered a few words and the eerie golden glow that seemed to surround her, passed from her to Dumbledore.

As Cassiel stepped back away from Dumbledore, Ron could see that Dumbledore’s chest was rising and falling, after a few more moments, Dumbledore’s eyes flickered open and he slowly sat himself up.

“Albus, do you remember?” Minerva asked as she stood beside Dumbledore.

“Yes Minerva, I believe I do.” Came a husky voice, but undoubtedly Dumbledore’s voice.

The room erupted in applause again, and Snape held out yet another vial to Dumbledore, which he took gratefully and drank its contents. Dumbledore then stood from the table; his eyes looked towards the woman standing in front of him, a twinkle sparkled in Dumbledore’s eyes, signalling to Ron that his former headmaster was defiantly back from the dead.

“Cassiel my dear, I did not expect to see you here.” Dumbledore said with a smile.

“I did not expect to be here, father.” Cassiel replied and stepped forward and embraced him.

Ron’s head swam with question and his brain wouldn’t allow him to register what was taking place before him. At hearing Cassiel, call Dumbledore “father”, Ron’s eyes fluttered, and he dropped to the floor.

Upon hearing the thud that Ron’s body made as it hit the floor, Dumbledore and Cassiel broke their embrace and looked at Ron lying on the floor.

“I did not expect to see Mr Weasley here either.” Dumbledore said as his eyes looked once again upon his daughter.

Cassiel sighed then looked from Ron to her father. “There is much to explain.” She replied.

Dumbledore shook his head as if to say he understood. He looked around the room, and his eyes landed on Madame Pomfrey.

“I trust you can take care of Mr Weasley, the rest of us shall return to the Great Hall. I’m feeling quite famished.” Dumbledore said in an amusing tone.

“Of course.” Madame Pomfrey replied, with tears in her eyes, but a smile planted firmly on her face.

Dumbledore nodded and with his arm around his daughter; he led them and the rest of the crowd out of the dungeons and up towards the great hall.

~~*~~

Ron grumbled as he began to wake up. Madame Pomfrey was by his side, smiling down upon him.

“Welcome back Mr Weasley.” Madame Pomfrey said quite happily, “Here, drink this. It will clear your head and take the pain away. You fainted, and a rather nasty bump appeared on the left side of your head. I’ve managed to take most of the swelling down; however, the rest will take care of itself.” Madame Pomfrey finished and held out a vial in front of Ron.

It took Ron a few seconds to understand what was going on around him. He looked around and saw that he was in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing. Then all the memories of Dumbledore’s awakening flooded back in his brain, and he held a shocked expression on his face once again.

“Really, Mr Weasley. They are waiting for us. Drink!” Madame Pomfrey scolded Ron and shook the vial once again.

Ron took the vial from Madame Pomfrey with shaky hands; he downed the potion in one gulp and almost instantly the pain in his head had vanished, and his mind did seem clearer. He no longer looked shocked; instead, he felt a sense of calm take over him.

“Come.” Madame Pomfrey said as she ushered Ron from off the bed he was occupying and led him out of the Hospital Wing and through the corridors to the Great Hall.

As they neared the Great Hall, a ghostly figure flew down from the roof and hovered before Ron.

“Ah, Mr Weasley! Welcome back to Hogwarts.” The ghost said and bowed his head wobbling as he did so.

“Hello Nearly Headless Nick.” Ron replied with a smile. The ghost then smiled back and flew off through the wall.

Ron couldn’t help but feel a warm feeling creep up inside of him. Being back in Hogwarts made him feel like he was a child again. Once they had reached the Great Hall, he could see only one table set up and his eyes immediately fell upon Dumbledore.

“Ah, there you two are. Please take a seat and join us.” Dumbledore said as he gestured to two vacant seats at the table.

Madame Pomfrey sat down, and Ron took the seat between her and Minerva. Ron then took a moment to register who was sitting down at the table with them. Snape was by Dumbledore’s right, then the Minister of Magic, his eyes landed on a familiar face opposite him. Remus Lupin smiled back at Ron when he noticed Ron looking at him and beside Remus sat Alistair Moody.

At the end of the table sat Hagrid. Ron nodded towards his old friend and Professor. Hagrid smiled and gave him a wink. Ron was astonished to realise that he never saw Hagrid until now. Hagrid was so huge in size that you generally could not miss seeing him even if you tried.

Of course, to his left sat Madame Pomfrey, to his right was Minerva, and then Cassiel and Dumbledore sat at the head of the table. Ron looked down at his empty plate then at all the glorious food that was presented before him. He smiled to himself once again; the best thing he missed about Hogwarts was the food. Without prompting, he served himself up a plate of food and began to eat with the rest of his companions.

After what seemed like hours, their feast had finished, and Dumbledore had drinks and sweets left on the table, he looked towards Ron for a moment before he spoke.

“Mr Weasley, my daughter along with the others present have brought me up to speed with what has been going on while I was…resting.” Dumbledore smiled at his last word. “I imagine you have many questions to ask, now would be your opportune moment.” Dumbledore finished.

Ron stared at each of the faces that looked upon him before clearing his throat and speaking. “You died. Snape killed you. However, you are not dead. How?”

Dumbledore nodded, before replying. “You are aware that there is a prophecy that needs to be fulfilled.” Dumbledore stated, and Ron nodded his head.

“Well, the Minister and I knew of this prophecy many years ago. Of course, Mr Davidson wasn’t even in the Ministry back then, he was an appraiser with the Historic Society. The prophecies in question belong to the Malfoy family.”

“Mr Davidson was a close friend to Lucius growing up; he watched his best friend turn to the dark side and had no way to bring him back. When Lucius came to Mr Davidson with the Malfoy prophecy, he promptly got in touch with me, and we deciphered its content together.”

“Once we knew what was to be, we knew we had to keep the truth from Lucius. This particular prophecy must be fulfilled or the world as we know it would cease to exist and we knew that Lucius would do what it took to destroy the documents and push his son in the other direction.”

Dumbledore took a moment to pour himself a drink and sip it before he continued. “Now with this new information at hand and having dealt with a similar prophecy before,” Dumbledore nodded towards Cassiel. “I asked Mr Davidson to return the documents to Lucius and tell him that the text wasn’t able to be deciphered.”

“I never thought much about the prophecy again as Voldemort was gaining strength and of course another prophecy was needed to be fulfilled.” Dumbledore looked at Ron, and Ron was nodding his head, as he knew of which prophecy Dumbledore was referring to.

“Harry.” Ron said as he looked at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore nodded his head in return. “Obviously I need not inform you about Harry, you would know more about him than I do. However, taking you back to your sixth year at Hogwarts, when I learned of Draco’s task, I knew that I needed to have something put into place to ensure my survival as the Malfoy prophecy still needed to be invoked. As Mr Davidson and I knew of what was to come, I arranged with Severus to plan my death.” Dumbledore finished.

Ron remained quiet, but his eyes flicked between Snape and Dumbledore. “So you faked your own death? Why?”

“I tried to help Harry as much as I could, but time was running out. Severus had promised to protect Draco, so I knew he would be safe. I was counting on my death to give Harry the courage and determination to face Voldemort and survive. From what I’ve been told, Harry did indeed succeed.”

“I must admit; I was hoping to be awakened sooner, rather than later; however, things went astray, which brings us here.” Dumbledore again finished.

Ron took a moment to absorb all this new information, and then looked towards Cassiel then back at Dumbledore. “So what is the Prophecy?”

Dumbledore smiled at Ron and began to tell the Prophecy to Ron. The questions and discussions continued late into the night and by the end Ron beamed with pride.


	25. Christmas Eve

Although the Quibbler was closed for the holiday season, Hermione and Ginny were still wrapping up last-minute articles and Luna had asked them to come into the office for a few hours to get the Christmas Edition out on time. Luna had some crazy idea that everyone would want a copy of the magazine as a Christmas gift, so once they had finalised the articles, Luna had arranged to have all the subscribers receive a copy on Christmas day.

While Hermione just wanted to stay in bed for the day, Ginny had convinced her to go with her into the office this morning, that way that could spend the rest of Christmas Eve shopping for last minute gifts.

As Hermione stood in front of her dresser, looking at her reflection in the mirror, she let out a sad sigh. She had needed to go shopping, as she had to find a gift for Draco. She had put so much time and effort into her tree decoration idea that she had forgotten to buy Draco a gift. They had not long returned from Diagon Ally, and she was supposed to be getting ready for dinner.

Hermione sighed again as she allowed herself to look around her room. She felt rather foolish now. It had been two weeks since Hermione proposed to Draco. She had played the scenario repeatedly in her head before she actually had the courage to ask Draco to marry her.

In her mind, it was sweet and romantic; he’d sweep her into his arms in a huge embrace and tell her “Of course I’ll marry you.” That never happened though. He didn’t say yes, he didn’t say no. He just stared at her, not knowing what to say. After a while, Hermione finally took his silence as a no and fled to her room.

Again, she felt another wave of humiliation and embarrassment flood through her and felt a blush creep up on her cheeks. She was Draco’s lover; she was his girlfriend by his own admission. She just wasn’t “Wife” material. Although they lived under the same roof, she still had her own room. They had slept together in his room, but he never once offered her to move her belongings into his room.

“How could I be so stupid?” Hermione asked herself. Her gaze returned to her dresser and to the photos that were stuck up around her mirror. Her eyes landed on one that had Ron, Ginny and Harry in it. Their faces were smiling and they were waving excitingly at her. Hermione smiled sadly, as she remembered the day she took the picture.

Hermione missed Ron terribly. She knew she should still be angry with him, but she wasn’t. Ron may not have made her happy in the end, but Hermione always valued his friendship.

“I miss you Ron.” She whispered at the picture; she then took one last look at herself in the mirror then left her room to place Draco’s gift under the tree.

Harry and Draco had yet to return from the Ministry. They had been preoccupied lately. They were always talking in hushed tones and wouldn’t tell the girls anything.

“Ministry business.” Harry and Draco would answer whenever Hermione or Ginny would ask about what they were so worried about.

“There you are!” Ginny called out from the kitchen. They had arrived home later than they had expected, and Ginny was rushing to get her Christmas dinner ready in time for Harry and Draco to return home.

“Can you please fix the salad, while I finish the roast?” Ginny asked as she hurried around the kitchen.

“Ginny, why don’t you just use magic, it would be quicker and easier.” Hermione said as she watched Ginny.

Ginny stopped dead in her tracks and nearly dropped the tray of roast vegetables she was holding. Her mouth was agape, shocked by what Hermione had just said.

“You know very well that I haven’t used magic in a long time to prepare or cook food.” Ginny replied, and Hermione could hear the anger in her voice.

Hermione shrugged Ginny off and walked over to the tree. The Bride and Groom ornament that she placed on the tree still hung near Draco’s serpent. Hermione placed Draco’s gift under the tree and as she stood back up; her ornament seemed to be mocking her. The smiling faces looked like they were laughing at her.

Hermione ripped the ornament off the tree and flung it across the room, just as Harry and Draco walked in the front door. They both looked at Hermione then at the broken ornament on the floor; Draco frowned and felt a sharp pang in his heart.

“What the….” Ginny said as she came out of the kitchen to see what had been broken. She looked at Hermione; concern etched on her face.

Hermione felt tears spring into her eyes and an awful sick feeling came over her. She clasped a hand over her mouth as she felt the bile rise and ran to her room and straight for the bathroom.

“What was all that about?” Harry asked Ginny as he closed the door behind him.

Ginny rolled her eyes and pointed to the broken ornament on the floor. “What do you think?”

Draco withdrew his wand and pointed it at the ornament. “Reparo” he whispered and the ornament flew back into its original state. Draco picked it up and placed it back on the tree. He then headed off down the hall and into Hermione’s room.

Hermione was still in her bathroom, and Draco closed the door behind him and sat down on the foot of her bed to wait for her. Hermione finished brushing her teeth and composed herself before walking back into her room. She knew Draco was in there; she heard him close the door.

As she entered her room, looked at Draco, his head was bowed down, and she noticed that he looked tired and a little sad. Hermione stood by the doorway of her bathroom, not wanting to talk. If she did, she knew she would end up in tears. They had not spoken much in the last two weeks, and she knew why.

“Are you okay?” Draco asked not lifting his head to look at her.

“I’m fine.” Hermione replied coldly.

Noticing Hermione’s tone, Draco lifted his head and looked at her. She avoided his eyes and her body tense. He recognised those signs; she was the same way when she first arrived here.

“I’m sorry.” Draco began. “I know I haven’t given you an answer and the truth is I don’t know why I haven’t.” Draco stood and walked over to Hermione.

As he did this Hermione seemed to want to back away, but the wall prevented her from moving, so she tensed her body up even more and still refused to look at him.

“A part of me is screaming to say yes. The other part of me is terrified. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you, and it scares the hell out of me.” Draco admitted.

Hermione finally looked at Draco and saw the sadness deepen on his face; a few tears escaped her eyes and slid down her cheeks. She wiped her face clear, and her anger returned.

“Don’t you think that I’m scared too?” Hermione replied; her voiced laced with hurt and anger. “You were the one who pursued me, remember? You’re the one who made me open up and admit my feelings.” Hermione continued, her anger rising as she continued to talk. Draco backed up and winced at the sharp pang was back, deep within his heart.

“I know we haven’t been together long, but honestly Draco, you can’t tell me that you don’t feel the connection we have. You cannot deny that whenever we are together that you can’t feel that feeling like something is drawing us together. In so many ways, we are so wrong, yet in so many other ways we are so right. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I told you then that I’ll understand if you felt rushed, but I just need an answer.” Hermione finished. She only just realised the fresh tears that ran down her face, but she didn’t wipe them away.

Draco sighed as he tried to find an answer; he finally shrugged and decided to be honest.

“The truth is Hermione, I…I don’t know. I don’t know if marriage is right or wrong for me right now.”

At hearing Draco’s words, Hermione’s heart shattered. For the second time in her life, she was rejected. Finally, she nodded, and her anger boiled back up. All her humiliation returned.

“I see,” Hermione began. “Perhaps I can tell you what you want then. Look around you Draco, you're standing in _my_ room. You say you love me, and you call me your girlfriend, yet we live under the same roof and still have our own rooms.”

Draco was about to say something, but Hermione cut him off, her anger had been pushed too far. She raised her hands at Draco as she continued.

“I don’t want to hear anymore, Draco. I’ve been down this road once before. I’m willing to commit my life, but you’re not. Do I have to wait for years for you to be ready like I did with Ron? Well I can tell you now; I’m through with waiting. All I’ve done is wait.” Hermione now moved away from Draco, not wanting to look at him.

“You know, maybe you haven’t changed all that much. You got me in the end; the thrill of the chase is gone. Perhaps you’re just repulsed by me like you always were.” Hermione spat, but as soon as those words left her mouth, she regretted them.

Hermione turned to face Draco; a hand covered her mouth as even she was shocked with herself with what she had just said.

“Oh, Draco. I’m so sorry; I didn’t mean that.” Hermione pleaded, but she knew it was too late. The cold hard look that Draco was always famous for when he was younger was back on his face.

Draco stood himself up straight; he glared back at Hermione though tears of hurt were filling his eyes.

“So much for your understanding, Hermione. You want your answer so bad, well here it is.” Draco replied calmly, but in an ice-cold voice.

“No, I will not marry you. I have tried and tried to make you see that I’m not that person anymore. You told me that I should remember my past, as it’s a part of who I am. Again, I thought you understood me, better than I understand myself. Clearly, I was wrong, considering you just spat my past back in my face. If you can’t trust me by now then you never will, and I can’t marry someone who doesn’t trust me.” Draco finished then left her room, slamming the door behind him.

Hermione stood silently in her room; she flinched when Draco slammed her door then again as she heard him slam his bedroom door shut. At that moment all the emotions she had felt these last two weeks finally came flooding out all at once as she crumbled to the floor and cried.


	26. Christmas Day - Part 1

Draco tossed and turned that night. His pain, anger and anxiety were getting to him. He gave up on trying to sleep, sat up in his bed, with his mind working overtime to try to sort out everything that was flying through it. For the last couple of weeks, Draco and Harry had been busy trying to find the files that held his Prophecy.

Draco’s mind was swimming with thoughts of Hermione and marriage when he went to work the morning after Hermione had proposed to him. He mindlessly walked into his office and sat behind his desk; he had no idea how long he had been sitting there when Harry had burst into his office and closed the door behind him.

“The files are missing.” Harry said in hushed tones.

Draco looked up at Harry confused. “Files, what files?”

“The Prophecy files. I magically sealed them in my filing cabinet yesterday, now; they are gone.” Harry replied

“Are you sure?” Draco asked as he got up out of his chair and looked through his own files. After a while, he gave in to the fact they were not in his office.

“I’m positive they were in my filing cabinet. I always put the files away after we’ve been working on them.” Harry said as he looked at Draco. He could see Draco was deep in thought.

“No one knows we’ve been working on this, so who would want them?”

“I have no idea.” Harry shrugged

After a moment of deep thought, Draco looked at Harry with resolve on his face. “The Minister. He knows about the Malfoy Prophecy documents. My father sent them to him to decipher, remember? The letter he sent back with the documents was the first thing I read in the file.” Draco finished.

Harry nodded as he also remembered reading the letter. “So, what do we do?” he asked.

Draco didn’t answer him. In truth, he had no idea. If the Minister did take the file, he had a good reason for it. Perhaps he knows more than he was letting on. For days after, they both tried to snoop around the offices asking if anyone had seen someone in Harry’s office without Harry being present. Again, they came up with nothing.

Harry then decided to see the Minister. He reported a file missing from his office, though he did not say what was in the file. He wanted to see the reaction the Minister gave him first. The Minister sounded shocked that someone would steal from the Ministry and informed Harry that he would investigate the matter further, and then was shown out of the Minister’s office.

When Harry told Draco of the meeting with the Minister, they knew straight away that the Minister had the file. Harry had not said what was missing, and the Minister did not ask what was missing, yet he had said he would investigate the matter. From that moment on, all Draco and Harry concentrated on was the Minister. They tried to find out about the Minister’s past and how he knew Lucius, yet again, all they came up with was dead ends.

Draco’s thoughts came back to the present; he glanced at his clock, and it read 2:46am. He then picked up his wand, which was on his bedside table and conjured up a cup of coffee. As he sipped on it, his thoughts drifted from work to Hermione.

He was hurt by what Hermione had said to him. He remembered there was a time where he did wonder if Hermione would marry him, but now that she had asked him, he was terrified by the thought. He truly is in love with Hermione, that he knew for sure; he just could not pinpoint where his fear about marriage was coming from.

He adored the marriage that his parents had; he always knew on some level that they loved each other. The very few times he had seen his parents show affection for each other were the happiest memories he had. The world he and his parents lived in was different though. Hermione is not the woman his mother was.

His mother was a woman of poise, beauty and grace. Their wealth and social status made them live and act every bit of the aristocratic ways. Draco smiled as he remembered how his mother would teach him proper mannerisms, to dress immaculately and always to treat ladies with respect and decorum.

Hermione was not of this world, although it was his father who taught him how to hate; he could change that part of him. Draco looked around his room, his eyes accustomed to its darkness. Even now, he may not live in the mansion that he grew up in; he still had impeccable taste in the way he furnished his home. Everything had its place; everything was indeed expensive and was well looked after. Draco may not live in the aristocratic world anymore; however, he conducted himself as if he still was.

It was not so much that Hermione did not fit his world; Draco felt like he was not fitting her life. Hermione was so relaxed and…Draco’s thoughts drifted off, as he could not find the right words. He smiled as the word Muggle came to his mind.

While Hermione grew up in a more relaxed atmosphere, Draco grew up in an atmosphere of perfection. His thoughts drifted back to their recent argument; there was one particular thing that she had said that stuck in his head.

_“Look around you Draco, you're standing in my room. You say you love me and you call me your girlfriend, yet we live under the same roof and still have our own rooms.”_

After a moment, Draco got out of his bed and turned on his bedside lamp, he blinked a few times to adjust to the brightness of the light. He looked around his room and smiled. He had to find a way to blend his life with Hermione’s, and he had an idea about how he could start to do that. He walked over to his wardrobe and began to put his idea into action.

~~*~~

Draco had been working on his room for hours; he was busy concentrating on what he was doing that he didn’t even notice Ginny knock on his door and enter his room. Once Ginny had entered, she quietly closed the door and put up a silencing charm. She turned around and was about to approach Draco’s bed to wake him, when she took in the state of his room.

Scattered all over his bed were clothes and empty picture frames. She looked over to where Draco stood, he was enchanting his photos to stick to his wall above his dresser. Ginny cleared her throat to announce to Draco that she was there; he slightly jumped and turned around to face her.

“Ginny, I didn’t know you were there.” Draco said with a puzzled look on his face.

Ginny saw the dark circles under his eyes, and a concerned look spread across hers. “Are you okay, Draco?” Ginny asked and motioned a hand around his room.

“Oh.” Draco replied as he looked at the mess he had created. “I’m just trying something new.”

Ginny walked towards Draco’s bed, moved some of the clothes and photo frames, and sat down on the spot she cleared. “I know this is none of my business Draco, but Hermione will calm down and see to reason.” Ginny began with a smile. “Hermione always does.”

Draco averted his eyes away from Ginny and slightly nodded his head to let her know he had heard her. “So, she told you about the argument then?” Draco asked.

Ginny shook her head, “No. Harry and I heard you both.”

With that, Draco raised his head and looked at Ginny in surprise, Ginny rolled her eyes and continued. “You both forgot to put a silencing charm up, these walls are paper thin, and so we heard what was being said.”

Draco let out a sigh and wanted to get off the topic of Hermione; he glanced at his clock and saw what the time was. “Ginny, its five in the morning, why are you here? I’m gathering you’re not here to talk about Hermione.”

“No, your quite right, I’m not.” Ginny replied. She took a deep steady breath and looked at Draco. “I just received an owl from my mother. She has invited all of us to the Burrow to celebrate Christmas.” Ginny took another deep breath, but this time,her eyes,clouded up with tears and her voice was a little shaky. “Considering she invited all of us, I figured it must be something to do with Ron. So I’m here to see if you would like to come.” Ginny finished, and Draco could see the pain in her expression.

“Of course,” Draco replied. “What time should we are ready to go?”

“In an hour.” Replied Ginny.

“An hour?” Draco repeated.

Ginny gave a small laugh at Draco’s surprise. “Yes, Christmas at the Weasley’s is an all-day experience. My mum wants us there for breakfast.”

Draco nodded, and Ginny stood to leave. She paused for a moment and looked at Draco once again. “Despite what Hermione said last night, she does love you, so don’t give up on her.” Ginny said

A smile came to Draco’s face, and he nodded his head once again. “I don’t plan to.”

Ginny smiled at Draco’s response and left his room. Draco yawned and stretched is arms as he looked around his room. It was a total mess, but right at that moment he didn’t care; he took off into his bathroom and proceeded to get ready to leave.

~~*~~

A while later, Draco emerged from his room and headed for the kitchen; he noticed that the tree and all the presents were gone. As he entered the kitchen, Harry was standing there and handed Draco a cup of coffee.

“Thanks.” Draco said upon taking his cup of coffee. “Where is the tree?”

“Oh, Ginny sent it to the Burrow considering we’d be there all day.” Harry replied.

Draco nodded, “Where are the girls?” he asked.

Harry rolled his eyes and replied. “Still getting ready.” At which both men laughed.

Fifteen minutes later, Ginny and Hermione emerged from their rooms. Draco drew in his breath as he noticed how amazing Hermione looked. She was wearing an ankle length dark green dress, and her hair was tucked underneath a Muggle Christmas Santa hat. Her eyes were still a bit puffy from crying, and Draco instantly felt that pang in his heart again.

“Are we ready to go?” Ginny asked as she reached where the boys were standing.

Draco approached Hermione from behind and slipped her coat on over her shoulders; she slightly jumped at Draco’s actions but smiled up at him. “Thank you.” She replied.

Draco gave her a faint smile as he helped her into her coat and whispered in her ear. “You look absolutely beautiful.” Again, Hermione smiled up at him, and Draco clasped his hand in hers.

“Yes, I believe we are.” Draco replied to Ginny.

Then with a loud Crack, all four friends, disapparated to the Burrow.

~~*~~

Draco, Hermione, Harry and Ginny had all appeared just out the front of the Burrow, they could hear the festivities had already begun as they made their way into the kitchen.

“Honestly Fred and George, I spent all night making those cookies!” Molly was yelling.

At the kitchen table, Fred, George, Bill, Fleur, Charlie and Mr Weasley were all laughing as they watched a plate of cookies shaped into Christmas tree’s get up and dance around the table.

Ginny burst out laughing along with Harry, Hermione and Draco. Upon hearing the new rupture of laughter, Molly turned around and squealed with delight.

“Ginny, you made it!” Molly exclaimed and immediately pulled her daughter in her arms for a huge hug.

“Y...yes mum, we’re here.” Ginny stammered as the force of the hug was cutting off Ginny’s air supply. “Okay, mum. Oxygen is becoming a problem!” Ginny said as she pulled herself out of her mother’s arms.

Molly kept Ginny at arm’s length and then noticed Harry and the bone crunching hug was then forced upon him. Once Harry had managed to struggle away from Molly’s hug, Molly turned to Hermione. Hermione braced herself for her turn, but it never came.

“Hermione dear,” Molly began. “Are you okay? You look awfully tired. Have you been crying?” Molly could see the sadness in Hermione’s face.

“Oh, it’s nothing to worry about.” Hermione replied and felt a blush creep up on her cheeks.

Molly looked at Draco, and saw how he too looked tired with a hint of sadness. “Well now, you two had better kiss and make up as today will be no day for a lover’s quarrel.” Molly said as she pointed her finger between Hermione and Draco.

Draco seemed to blush at Molly’s response and Hermione felt the heat rise high on her cheeks. There were giggles coming from the kitchen table, but Molly ignored them and hugged Hermione, though her hug was much more gentle, it was still loving.

Molly looked towards Draco and offered her hand; Draco returned the gesture and shook Molly’s hand back in return. “Welcome to the Burrow Draco. It’s not as much as I’m sure you’re used to, but its home.” Molly said to him with a smile on her face.

“I’m most honoured to be here Mrs Weasley, your home is magnificent.” Draco replied and returned Molly’s smile.

Molly blushed slightly at Draco’s response then turned around. “Well, please, take a seat at the table and I’ll get breakfast ready.” Molly ushered her new guests to the table.

As they approached the table, the rest of the Weasley clan were welcoming the new guests, when footsteps were heard bounding down the stairs.

“What’s all the commotion about?” A voice came sounding out.

“RON!” Ginny, Harry, Hermione and Draco said, as they stood deadly still, their eyes wide with shock, and their mouths were slightly agape.

Ron beamed at them as he entered the kitchen. He held out his hands as if welcoming them.

“Happy Christmas!” Ron said, still beaming at the shocked faces of his old friends and Draco.


	27. Christmas Day - Part 2

 

Ron stared at the four people standing on the opposite side of the kitchen table; his arms flopped back down by his side, and his grin faded from his face. “Who am I kidding?” Ron asked himself. He had noticed that Draco had put a hand around Hermione’s waist, an instinct he used to have when he wanted to protect her.

Ginny and Hermione had their hands covering their mouths and their eyes were still wide in shock. Suddenly both girls ran around the table, and Ginny jumped onto Ron, hugging him as tight as she could while Hermione flanked his right side, also hugging him tight.

Both girls pulled back slightly from Ron and Ginny proceeded to bombard him with questions.

“Where have you been? Why haven’t you contacted us? Are you okay? When did you come back?” Ginny was asking

Hermione let go of Ron as Ginny was asking her questions, when Ginny had finally finished, Hermione’s voice seemed to echo as she asked the one question she needed to ask him. “Why?” Her voice was soft yet demanding.

Both Ginny and Ron looked at Hermione and Ginny backed away from her brother, knowing that Hermione deserved her answer before she did.

Ron looked nervously around the room; every pair of eyes was flicking between him and Hermione. Harry looked at him with a sad expression yet he could tell that Harry had anger radiating through his eyes. Draco too was eyeing him with suspicion. Ron could tell that Draco was ready to hex him if given the chance.

“Arthur, Bill, Fleur, Fred and George I think we should go into the living room and....” Molly’s voice sang out but trailed off as she didn’t quite know what to do.

“Yes, yes,” Replied Arthur, "I’m sure we can swap one present while these lot all talk.” Arthur motioned towards Ron, Hermione and Ginny.

“But Mum, we’re hungry!” Whined Fred.

“Yeah, the least you could do is feed us some good tucker while we watch Ron fumble his way through his explanation.” George replied, and Bill and Fleur chuckled at the twins.

“ ** _OUT_**!” Bellowed Molly, and at once, Arthur, Bill and Fleur flew out of their seats and left the kitchen, followed by a grumpy looking Fred and an annoyed looking George. As Molly passed Ron, she gave him a quick squeeze on his shoulder as she too left the kitchen.

Ron looked once again at Hermione and smiled slightly; his face was flushed, and Hermione knew he was nervous.

“Why, Ron?” Hermione asked again.

“Erm…” Ron began. He really didn’t know where to start. He was told not to reveal too much. “Perhaps we all should sit down.” He finally said and motioned to the kitchen table.

Hermione nodded, and the small group left in the kitchen sat down at the table, again, all eyes were on Ron.

Ron turned in his chair and looked Hermione; their eyes met, and he could feel his heart skip a beat. He took hold of Hermione’s right hand and held it between his.

“I’m so very sorry for what happened the last time we saw each other. I did not mean for it to go that far. I was supposed to scare you enough to push you to go to Draco. I never meant to hurt you.” Ron finally said.

Hermione’s eyes clouded over with tears; she looked over towards Draco, who was sitting opposite her, and saw his confused expression, then turned back to look at Ron.

“What do you mean? Why were you supposed to scare me and how did you know about Draco?” Hermione asked in a rush of confusion.

Ron nervously looked towards Draco before continuing; he took a deep breath and looked Hermione dead in the eyes. “It has something to do with Draco’s family prophecy.”

After hearing Ron’s last statement, both Draco and Harry sat up straight and yelled out. "What?”

Hermione couldn’t seem to keep the shocked expression off her face, as she looked at Draco and Harry. When she turned around to look at Ginny, she simply shrugged.

“What Prophecy?” Hermione asked, and her eyes landed once again on Draco.

“How the hell do you know about the prophecy?” Draco spat out; his eyes turned cold, and Hermione could once again see that Draco looked like the boy she knew growing up.

Ron let out a sigh and dropped Hermione’s hand, and raked his through his hair, trying to figure out what to tell them without breaking the news that Dumbledore wished to deliver himself.

“I can’t tell you everything right now,” Ron said as he looked up at Draco. “What I can say is that it’s not a coincident that you and Hermione were to meet up and fall in love with each other. You are meant to be with her Draco.” Ron then looked back at Hermione; he could see she was about to cry and somewhere deep inside his heart was breaking all over again.

“Hermione…I really am sorry for what happened. I swear on my life that I never meant to go that far. I know you too well to know if you truly did not love Draco, you wouldn’t be with him.” Ron finished and once again took her hand in his, willing her to understand but more importantly, to forgive him.

Hermione’s head felt like it was spinning. So much has happened over the last few weeks and now all of this was beginning to be too much for her to handle. She felt the tears fall down her cheeks, and she needed to get away.

Hermione pulled her hand out of Ron’s, stood up and ran out into the fresh morning air. Ron rose from his seat to go after Hermione, however, Draco had somehow managed to get up before he did and rounded himself in front of Ron and blocked him from going after Hermione.

“I think you’ve said enough for now.” Draco said as he glared at Ron. “I will be expecting answers about the prophecies when I return.” With that said, Draco turned and went to walk out of the kitchen to find Hermione.

Ron grabbed hold of Draco’s left arm and went to say something, but before he could, Draco’s right arm swung around, and his fist connected hard with Ron’s face. Ron flew down to the ground and once he recovered. Ron felt blood dripping from his nose.

Ginny and Harry leapt out of their seats and went to Ron’s side, although Harry was confused about everything, he was angry with Draco.

“Are you okay Ron?” Ginny asked as she helped Ron stand up.

“Draco…” Harry began but was cut off by Ron.

“No, it’s okay Harry, and I’m fine Ginny.” Ron said and looked at Draco. “I deserved that.”

Draco glared at Ron once again, then turned back around and made his way out to the Gardens of the Burrow. Draco swept his eyes across the gardens, saw that Hermione was down by the lake, and began to make his way down towards her.

Hermione was staring out over the lake. So much had happened to her since she returned, and she was feeling overwhelmed. She had missed Ron so much, but now that he was back and safe, he left her with more questions to be answered. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn’t hear Draco approach her.

Draco wrapped his hands around her waist from behind her and held her close to him. He placed a soft kiss on the top of her head and just held her. They stood that way for a while, when Hermione finally turned around in Draco’s embrace and looked up into his eyes. Once their eyes locked, Hermione felt that all too familiar energy pulse through her body.

“Tell me about your prophecy. It has to be the reason why you and Harry have been so anxious about lately.” Hermione asked softly.

“There isn’t much to tell. Harry and I have been trying to decipher it for a while now, and then two weeks ago the file went missing. We’ve been trying to find it ever since.” Draco replied.

“Decipher it?” Hermione asked with confusion etched on her face.

Draco nodded. “Yes, it’s not like the other prophecies. Apparently, the Malfoy prophecies were written many years ago, perhaps as early as when time first began. Only a handful of people know how to decipher it, but every lead we had turned out to be dead ends.” Draco sighed as he finished.

Hermione tried to absorb all this new information in her head, but yet again, she found herself feeling dizzy from everything that was happening. She broke out of Draco’s embrace and walked a bit away from him. She shook her head to try to clear it of all her thoughts.

“Hermione?” Draco said with concern in his voice.

“I’m fine Draco.” Hermione replied and turned back to face him. “I’m…I’m so sorry for the things I said to you last night.” She continued, and her voice became shaky. “All I know is how much I love you. I don’t know if what I’m feeling is even healthy, but I’ve missed you and I…I just want to…to be with you.” Hermione choked out the last of her words as she broke down in tears.

Draco immediately swept Hermione into his arms again in a tight embrace. “I love you too, baby. I love you too.” He whispered into her ear.

Without even realising it, their lips met and they were sharing a sweet yet passionate kiss. With that kiss, the world and everything in it disappeared and only the two of them existed.

 


	28. Christmas Gifts

As Draco and Hermione entered the kitchen of the Burrow a while later, the Christmas spirit was back, and everyone was seated around the table eating and talking happily as if nothing had happened.

“Hey, Hey,” Fred yelled out once he noticed that Draco and Hermione had returned. George stood up and walked over to the two vacated seats beside him and pulled them both out.

“Come and join the fun, oh and Draco, you can sit here.” George said as he patted the chair next to his. “Fred and I wish to thank you for our Christmas gift.”

Hermione and Draco looked towards each other then back at Fred and George with puzzled looks on their face. As they took their seats, Fred leaned over his brother and whispered to Draco. “Great punch you gave Ron. We’ve been waiting for the day it happened.” Fred winked at Draco and gave him thumbs up gesture and George mimicked his twin’s actions.

Hermione heard what was said and gasped at Draco. “You punched him? Why?”

“He had it coming Hermione, besides Ron’s perfectly fine…Now!” George replied, and the twins laughed as they looked at their brother who was sitting opposite them.

Draco’s trademark smirk returned to his face once again. “It was my pleasure.” He said to the twins.

Hermione shook her head in disbelief and looked at Ron, and he waved it off as if it was just some sort of joke. Hermione began to load her plate with food as the rest of the room was filled with conversation and laughter.

She felt slightly angry with Draco for using such violence and she carelessly pushed the food around on her plate as she sat in silence and lost in her own thoughts. She did not condone physical violence. They have all been through enough without resorting to that; however, she then also remembered that she too once gave Draco a rather excellent right hook in their third year. Slowly a small smile spread across Hermione’s face, in a way, it was rather romantic. Draco had stood up for her, not even Ron had done that.

Hermione’s anger seemed to disappear as a feeling of warm satisfaction came over her, and she lifted a fork full of food to her mouth.

“Eww...” Hermione smelt the food and almost heaved. She dropped the fork back down on her plate and pushed it slightly away.

Hermione stared at her plate and wondered what was wrong with her. Normally she enjoyed eggs and bacon for breakfast. She sighed and shook her head. She put it down to all the stress she has been under lately. She and Draco seemed to have made up from their fight, but he still hadn’t mentioned anything about them getting married.

“Hermione dear, is everything all right?” Mrs Weasley called out from down the table.

Hermione looked over towards Molly and noticed that everyone in earshot was looking at her.

“I’m fine. I’m just not all that hungry right now.” She lied; however; she slightly smiled at Molly.

Hermione could see Molly looking at her somewhat puzzled; then her expression changed into something like acknowledgement, and it confused her.

“Ah, I understand perfectly!” Molly exclaimed and smiled brightly at Hermione then continued with her conversation with her husband.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Draco had whispered into her ear. She felt him take hold of her hand underneath the table, and gave hers a gentle squeeze.

Hermione turned her head slightly to look at Draco. For some reason, she examined his face. His eyes looked different though she did not know why. His eyes were still brilliant blue, though they seemed to have a slight sparkle to them. His cheeks had a pinkish glow to them; they no longer bore the paleness she had grown used to seeing. His lips were slightly parted, and they looked fuller somehow.

Draco was truly handsome; she could see now why so many girls used to talk about him back at Hogwarts. She smiled at Draco, squeezing his hand back in return; she then leaned in, and placed a soft small kiss on Draco’s lips. Draco seemed surprised by Hermione’s bold response, though he certainly had no complaints.

“I’m fine. Honestly.” Hermione told him.

Draco smiled and nodded his head accepting her answer then leaned back towards her, kissing her again.

“Oh, gross!” Ron groaned from across the table. “Do you two mind, I’m trying to eat here. Go find a room if you insist on doing that.”

Laughter erupted from around the table at Ron’s response; Hermione and Draco were both blushing and felt slightly embarrassed, but laughed too.

“You’re just jealous.” George threw at his younger brother.

Ron laughed and looked at the twins. “You forget, I’ve already kissed those lips…And more!” Ron threw back and beamed proudly.

“Ron!” Hermione gasped and felt her cheeks burn. She kicked her foot out and hit Ron on his shin.

“Ouch!” Ron yelped and bent down to rub his leg.

Draco watched on in amusement. For the first time in his life, he felt like he was part of the family. He was still surprised by the Weasley’s acceptance of him, but he was not willing to do anything to spoil the moment.

To Hermione’s great relief, the day had passed rather quickly and with lots of fun and laughter. All the boys, including Draco, had decided to hold a Quidditch match outside; the game had lasted for three hours before Bill decided that enough was enough. For the first one and a half hours, the girls had watched the boys play, and then once they grew bored they had headed inside for some girl time.

By the time the boys were trudging back into the house, Mrs Weasley was beginning to prepare the dinner for the evening.

“Oh, jolly good, you boys are back. How was the game?” Molly asked.

“It was brilliant Mum!” Fred and George replied at the same time.

Molly beamed at her boys and hurried them off into the living room. “It’s time to open the presents.” She told them all.

The excitement that surrounded the Burrow was enough to fill the Quidditch World Cup stadium. Hermione, however, was feeling butterflies in her stomach. Her gift was a last minute effort, and she was unsure if Draco was going to like it.

Within minutes, paper was flying all over the place, squeals of delight were sung out, laughter and chatter filled the room as presents were opened, appreciated and thanked for. Draco had found his present from Hermione and his to her and picked them up. He noticed Hermione seemed to be in a daze and his concern for her was beginning to rise once again.

Hermione watched as Draco approached her, and she was feeling slightly dizzy again. She was expecting Draco to give her the gift he had gotten for her, instead he took her by the hand and led her through the Burrow and back outside into the darkness of the gardens.

Once Hermione felt the cool air outside she took a deep breath and felt her dizziness ease. “Draco, where are we going?” she asked him.

“Shh…” he replied as he placed a finger to his lips to hush her. Before she knew what was happening, they had apparated back into their living room.

Hermione looked around her, puzzled by what they were doing back home. Draco noticed her confusion and smiled.

“I thought we could do with some privacy,” He told her. “So who goes first?” he asked as he held up two packages.

Hermione smiled and nodded at Draco; she pointed to the gift she had bought for him. Draco placed the other package down on the coffee table and carefully unwrapped his present. Hermione watched in silence as Draco took the paper wrapping off his present revealing a large, plain, black box.

Draco had noticed before that his gift seemed rather heavy and had wondered what would be inside. He now was able to satisfy his curiosity as he carefully balanced the box in one hand, while lifting the lid of the box with the other. Once the lid was removed, Draco then lifted back the black tissue paper that covered his gift.

When his eyes registered what Hermione had bought him, he gasped and instantly felt his breath catch in his throat. All at once, he was overcome by a wave of raw emotion and his eyes filled with tears. He was looking at a solid pewter picture frame with, what looked like; a Victorian design embossed around it. Inside the frame was the image that had been with his letters from his parents.

Draco stared at the photo and watched as his father’s smiling face leaned down to place a kiss on the forehead of the baby in the picture. He then looked at the smiling and loving face of his mother and a lone tear escaped his eyes and rolled down his cheek. Draco looked back up to Hermione’s face and saw she was waiting for his reaction.

“I…I …How…” Draco choked out. He didn’t really know how to thank her or how to respond.

Hermione smiled at Draco and lifted her hand to his face, her thumb brushing away the streak that his tear had left. “You left the picture in your desk drawer. I had been looking for a spare piece of parchment when I came across the picture. I know how much you like those kinds of frames,” Hermione pointed at the frame in Draco’s hand. “So I thought you might like to add this picture to your collection instead of keeping it hidden.”

Draco stared lovingly at Hermione; a slow smile spread across his face and then he looked back down at his present then back at Hermione and his smiled turned from a smile to a grin. He placed his gift on the coffee table then picked up his gift for Hermione and took her hand.

“Follow me.” He said to Hermione then led her down the hallway to the closed door of his bedroom. Hermione was slightly confused by Draco’s actions and wasn’t sure if this was a bad sign or a good sign, but she allowed him to lead her off.

“Close your eyes.” Draco instructed Hermione. He could tell she was hesitant, but she closed her eyes anyway.

Draco then opened his door and led Hermione in. He faced her towards his wall of pictures he had been working on, and he stood slightly behind her.

“Okay, you can open your eyes now.” Draco said.

Hermione’s eyes flew openly and at first she was confused by what she was looking at then her confusion turned to be puzzled as she turned around to face Draco.

“I don’t get it.” She simply said.

Draco laughed and then wondered how he could start to explain.

“Well, after our argument last night, you had me thinking about a few things. You were right by pointing out that we act like a couple yet we don’t actually live like couple. That is when I came to realise that all my life I have grown up surrounded by space and privacy, so to me, it was just normal. But after what you said about still having your own room, it made me think about why I haven’t been able to open up properly to you and allow you into my life completely.” Draco then pointed to his wall of photos before continuing.

“So this was one way I could think of to abandon one part of my life of perfection and allow for change. I remembered how your photos are pinned around your dresser mirror and tried to accommodate this in my room.” Draco finished and looked back at Hermione.

At first Hermione was taken aback by Draco, then her heart swelled with warmth as she realised that Draco was trying to allow his guards down to accept her into his life. As he was explaining his wall to her, she smiled at him once he had finished Hermione looked at his wall once more then back at him, and she couldn’t help herself; she laughed.

Draco was confused, and he half smiled at her laughing. “Um…what’s so funny?”

Once Hermione’s laughter had subsided, she looked up at a blushing Draco. “Oh, Draco, You didn’t have to do this you know, I love you for who you are, not for what you can be.”

“I know that, but I thought that maybe if I changed some things around, then when you do move your things into my room, I’ll be used to how you like things.” He replied.

Hermione raised her brow at Draco. “You want me to move my things in?” she asked

Draco nodded in confirmation. “Which brings me to this.” he raised his hand that still held Hermione’s gift in it. He handed it to her and watched as Hermione ripped open the paper.

Hermione gasped as she realised that she was now holding a dark green velvet jewellery box. She carefully lifted its lid and gasped again as she stared down at the most gorgeous set of tear drop diamond earrings set in white gold and a matching necklace that had a tear drop diamond pendant; she also noticed that there were three diamond studs on either side of where the pendant hung.

“Oh, my…It’s beautiful!” Hermione exclaimed as she looked up at Draco.

“It was my mothers. She wore these everywhere.” He said as he picked up the necklace and moved around to place it around Hermione’s neck. Hermione felt the weight of the necklace as Draco helped her put it on. Instinctively her hand reached up to feel the new addition around her neck and smiled to herself. She then lifted the earrings from out of its case and placed the empty box down on Draco’s bed. She then fitted the earrings in her ear then walked over to Draco’s full-length mirror and admired the way she looked.

“Are you sure you want me to have these?” She asked Draco as she looked at his reflection in the mirror.

“Yes. If you are to be the future Mrs Malfoy, then you should be prepared to look the part.” Draco replied.

Hermione gasped again and spun herself around to face Draco. “The future Mrs Malfoy? Does that mean you’re saying yes to my proposal?” Hermione asked excitingly.

Draco smiled at her and nodded his head. Hermione jumped into his arms and hugged him tight as Draco slid his arms around her waist and returned her hug.

“Yes Hermione, I want to marry you.” He said in their embrace.

Hermione pulled back slightly and looked into Draco’s eyes. She felt herself falling, and as Draco leaned down and placed his lips on hers, for the second time that night, all the world had melted away.


	29. Unexpected Guests

Hermione soon found that Draco had apparated them both back into the gardens of the Burrow. Her head was still spinning from their kiss and Draco tightly wrapped an arm around her waist as he led them back into the house. Laughter and chatter filled the air, as they entered the living room again.

Ron and Harry were concentrating hard over a game of wizards chess. Fred, George, Bill and Charlie were all sitting around Fleur, laughing as they watched her transfigure into different animal breeds. Hermione spotted a jar of sweets on the floor that read “Zesty Zoo Treats”. She giggled to herself as she thought that Fleur was obviously the new test subject for the twins’ latest product.

Ginny was seated on the lounge with her parents engaged in a rather deep conversation about weddings. Hermione could not help but smile at the scene before her. She was so glad that the war had not taken anyone from this family. She hugged herself tighter to Draco, and she felt him hug her back.

“Bloody Hell!” Ron suddenly shouted out and stood up from his seat, knocking the chessboard over.

Little shouts could be heard from the chess pieces on the floor; however, the rest of the room went silent as all eyes turned to Ron. He was staring at Draco and Hermione, his eyes wide with shock.

“I thought you two had disappeared to…well…you know…” Ron stammered and turned a deep shade of red. “I didn’t think you were going to knock over a jewellery store!”

Hermione looked at Ron, shocked, yet confused. Suddenly a shriek came from across the room, and Ginny flew over to stand in front of Draco and Hermione. She did not see a ring on Hermione’s finger, but from the necklace and earrings, she was wearing, Ginny knew.

“Oh my…He said yes!” Ginny squealed at Hermione and then looked to Draco. “You said yes, didn’t you?”

Draco laughed, and Hermione shook her head in disbelief. “Yes, I said yes.” Draco finally replied to Ginny.

Ginny immediately began jumping up and down and hugged both Hermione and Draco, whilst chanting, “He said yes, He said yes!”

“Ginny dear, have you gone mad? What has he said yes to?” Mrs Weasley asked as she approached her jumping daughter and reached out a hand to stop Ginny.

“Draco’s going to marry Hermione!” Ginny again squealed out in excitement.

Harry stood up from his seat as he began to understand what all the commotion was about and walked over towards Draco and Hermione.

“Congratulations mate.” Harry said as he held out a hand to Draco.

Draco shook Harry’s hand and soon enough, everyone was congratulating the couple. Mrs Weasley hurried herself back into the kitchen to prepare for dinner; Ginny whisked Hermione away, excited to have someone to share a new interest in bridal wear. Ron fixed the chessboard back together and took his seat.

“May I?.” Draco asked as he gestured to the seat Harry had occupied.

“You play?” Ron questioned with surprise in his voice.

“Of course, who doesn’t?” Draco replied and chuckled as he sat down.

Harry grinned at them, surprised that all hostilities had been shortly forgotten, due to a game of wizard’s chess. He then pulled up a third chair and watched as Ron and Draco began their game.

Hermione kept glancing over at the boys, smiling, as she was amazed at how well things were going between the three of them. It was hard to remember back when they all hated Draco with a passion, now Hermione’s passion for Draco was something else entirely. Ginny was still talking excitedly about wedding arrangements, even suggesting a double wedding. Hermione could not help but giggle at her friend; she was only just starting to get used to being a future Mrs Malfoy and had not thought about setting dates yet.

After what seemed like a lifetime had passed, Mrs Weasley sang out that dinner was ready. Hermione laughed as she heard Harry; Ron and Draco groan their protest. Ron and Draco had been locked in their game, and Ron was losing by one piece. Hermione walked over to where the boys sat and took hold of one of Draco’s hands, pulling on it lightly to urge him to move.

“Just a minute,” Draco said with a touch of annoyance in his voice.

Hermione dropped his hand, and raised a brow at Draco’s response, though a smile played on her lips.

“Is this how it’s going to be when we’re married?” she asked in a teasing manner.

“Huh,” Draco looked up at Hermione in surprise. “Oh,” he said as he realised what Hermione had meant.

Draco was about to rise from his seat when a loud crackling came from the fireplace behind Ron. Everyone in the room looked towards the fireplace as huge; bright green flames leapt out; then everyone gasped as they saw someone in a red hat and suit pop out of the flames.

“Ho, Ho, Ho…Merry Christmas.” The man in the red suit called out.

The room erupted in laughter as they realised a man dressed in a Muggle Santa Clause suit had greeted them. The man was facing the group by the chessboard and Hermione and Ginny were laughing along with the others, Ron stood smiling, though Harry and Draco sat frozen in their seats.

After a moment, Harry and Draco had jumped out of their seats, their wands pointing towards the man in a Santa suit.

“Who the hell are you?” Draco asked, is face pale and his voice ice cold.

“What are you doing here?” Harry added; his voice held the same tone as Draco’.

Hermione and Ginny gasped and stepped back from the wands that had flown by their faces. Ron had a look of shock mixed with fear and he too had jumped back. Everyone else had fallen silent and watched.

“Ah, Harry and Draco,” the Santa said, not caring about the wands pointing at him. “I see you both have grown up quite well. I trust you have both been good this last year,” then Santa leaned in closer to the two boys and whispered, “I hear that I am supposed to check my list twice.” The Santa winked at the boys then stood himself back up straight and chuckled to himself.

Hermione and Ginny caught the twinkle in the old man’s eyes and again, gasped in shock as they covered their mouths. Harry too had caught the twinkle, and he had paled even more as he slowly lowered his wand.

“It can’t be. It’s impossible.” Harry whispered in confusion.

Draco looked from Santa to Harry and back again. “I don’t know what you’re playing at, but I suggest you reveal yourself immediately.” Draco demanded.

“As you wish,” Santa replied with a slight bow.

Everyone watched as the Santa pulled out a wand from his coat and waved it once over his head. The charm that he had placed on himself was wearing off. A light purple wizard hat replaced the red hat; light purple robes replaced the red suit, and half-moon spectacles replaced the wire-rimmed glasses that the Santa had worn.

“Oh my…” Hermione whispered as Santa turned into someone whom she recognised very well.

Draco's eyes were wide in shock, and he was at a loss for words. Harry, on the other hand, was fuming. His hand clutched his wand by his side tightly; his eyes glistened with tears and his head spinning from the sight he was seeing.

“Albus Dumbledore is dead. I was there; I saw it with my own eyes.” Harry said through clenched teeth as he raised his wand once again. “Who are you?”

Upon hearing these words, Draco whipped his head to the side and looked at Harry. His confusion growing more than just the sight of their old headmaster.

“You were there?” Draco asked

“Yes.” Harry answered, still looking at Dumbledore.

“How? I didn’t see you there,” Draco pressed on.

“Trust me, Draco, I was there.” Harry answered truthfully.

“I too can vouch for Harry being there, Draco. Sadly, the task had to be done.” Dumbledore added.

The room was deathly silent as everyone looked at Dumbledore; Ron, however, hid a smile from the others. Another sound cracked from the fireplace and everyone, except for Dumbledore, jumped as a new person joined them.

“Remus, what are you doing here?” Harry asked in surprise; his wand slightly dropped with his arrival.

“Ah, Harry, I do apologise for my delay. It seems Tonks had accidentally knocked over my potion, and we had to rush to complete a new batch.” Remus Lupin replied and then turned to address Dumbledore. “Albus, I am very sorry.”

“No need to worry, Remus, though I do think I seem to have caught Harry and Draco by surprise.” Dumbledore said in amusement.

Remus looked from Dumbledore to where Harry and Draco stood and finally noticed the wands pointing in their direction.

“Harry, I can assure you that this really is Albus Dumbledore,” Remus began as he stepped carefully between Dumbledore and the two wands. “I know there is much to explain, and we will tell you everything, however, I must ask that you and Draco lower your wands.”

Eyeing Remus thoroughly, Harry finally nodded once and lowered his wand. When he noticed that Draco had not followed his actions, he was surprised.

“Draco, I trust Remus, you can lower your wand,” Harry said.

Draco did not flinch, or make a move. He stood still, wand extended out in front of him, with an ice-cold glare upon his face. Hermione then moved behind Draco; she placed one hand on his shoulder and with the other; she lowered Draco’s arm. Upon feeling Hermione’s touch, Draco’s expression changed as he looked at her. His icy expression turned to one of warmth and love and Hermione smiled at him.

“We all trust Remus, Draco. I don’t understand what is going on here either, but I’m sure we will find out.” She whispered to him.

Draco placed his wand back into his pocket and looked back towards Remus, his expression instantly cold once again.

“Oh, enough of this nonsense,” Mrs Weasley called out as she approached Remus and Dumbledore. “Albus, Remus, it is wonderful to see you again.” She greeted the two men and hugged them in turn. “Come now, dinner is getting cold and we have much to catch up on.” Mrs Weasley smiled and ushered them into the kitchen, and everyone else followed.

Hermione, Ginny, Harry and Draco were left alone in the living room, each of them staring in the direction the others had left in. Ginny sighed impatiently and rolled her eyes.

“Oh, come on. We’re never going to find out if we stand here all night.” Ginny addressed her three friends.

Harry seemed to ignore Ginny and walked straight past her and into the kitchen and silently, Ginny, Hermione and Draco followed.


	30. Prophocies Revealed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only 2 Chapters left after this one :)

The Weasley kitchen had never been so silent while being so full of people. Harry, Draco, Hermione and Ginny all stared at Dumbledore, waiting for him to speak. Hermione could tell by the look on Dumbledore’s face that what he had to say was quite serious, yet he was pleased about it. The twinkle that he wore in his eyes, only ever appeared when he was happy about something. Finally, Dumbledore cleared his throat, looked between Harry and Draco, and then begun to speak.

“First I must apologise to you all. I’m aware that things were not easy after my departure, though I assure you now, that it was very necessary for my death to happen.” Dumbledore paused for a moment, withdrew a file from his robes, and placed it on the table in front of him.

At the sight of the file, both Harry and Draco sat up straight, surprised to see the missing prophecy file. Draco’s eyes flew back up to look at Dumbledore.

“What do you know about my prophecy?” Draco asked bluntly.

“I know a great deal about it, Draco, as I had experienced this kind of prophecy before,” Dumbledore smiled, yet a sad look floated across his face. “Allow me to start from the beginning. When you were born, your father knew that you would be destined for great things. Though, the dedication he had, to find out what that was, surprised me.”

Draco tensed up in his chair at the mention of his father and Hermione reached under the table and took his hand in hers to offer him some support. Draco quickly glanced at her and relaxed a little before returning his attention back to Dumbledore. He noticed that Dumbledore had taken the prophecy documents out of the file and had laid them on the table in front of him.

“These documents are older than time itself,” Dumbledore continued as he lightly tapped a finger over the documents. “How your father came to be in possession of them is still not known. However, your father did approach an old friend of his to try and decipher the text - ”

“The Minister?” Draco cut in, and he heard a few gasps around the room.

“Yes, but what isn’t commonly known, is that Derrick Davidson was your father’s best friend many years ago." Dumbledore paused as he heard more gasps and quiet chatter around the room.

“Albus, how can that be? Derrick was in Gryffindor at Hogwarts. He would never have had been caught consorting with a Slytherin.” Arthur said in exasperation.

“Arthur, you must remember that although Lucius was indeed a Slytherin, he was not always against those of non-magical decent. It was not until Voldemort came into power that he swayed those that he could, over to his side.” Dumbledore then looked back at Draco. “Their friendship was a secret at Hogwarts, the rivalry between the houses has been the same since the school was founded. Your father’s friendship with Derrick was kept a secret during the first few years of Hogwarts, though outside of school, Derrick was a regular guest at the Malfoy Mansion.” Dumbledore then sighed as he continued with his story.

“Unfortunately, by their fourth year, the Malfoy family was very well known to be a part of Voldemort’s followers. This is when the friendship between your father and Derrick had begun to drift. Derrick pleaded with your father to not join forces with Voldemort, but your father was a proud and stubborn man. Lucius was branded with the Dark Mark before he graduated Hogwarts. No one actually knows when his initiation took place, but we do know that he took part in some activities that Voldemort had set for his Death Eaters.”

“Why was Lucius not expelled?” Arthur said in a furious tone though Molly had a hand on his shoulder to keep him from jumping up in a rage.

“It would not have done Lucius any good to be expelled from Hogwarts, Arthur. While he, and others that had joined Voldemort attended Hogwarts, we were able to keep a closer eye on their activity, this proved to be more helpful than we realised at the time.” Dumbledore again returned his attention to Draco and observed the young man sitting before him.

Draco sat with his head lowered, and his eyes focused on a scratch on the table. A part of him still carried pride for his family; another part of him hated them. Yet, he sat quietly listening to Dumbledore and Arthur speak about his family as if he were not there.

“When Lucius and Derrick graduated, they obviously went in different directions. The difference being that Derrick knew that Lucius was to be a full member of the Death Eaters, while Derrick secretly joined the Order and worked undercover for us. History was his passion, and he provided us with much needed information while he worked for the Historic Society. Naturally, the day he was contacted with these documents from Lucius, he came straight to me with them. Together, Derrick and I deciphered the text and upon learning what these documents held, I knew straight away that Lucius was to never find out.”

Dumbledore’s last comment was what got Draco to focus his attention back to his old headmaster.

“What do they say?” Draco asked his face void of any emotion, though he gently squeezed Hermione’s hand.

Dumbledore gathered up the first page and began to read aloud, “A time will come when the greatest, darkest power will come to rise. The Daughters of the Earth will have tilted the balance of Good and Evil. The Chosen One will defeat this Dark Power, leaving behind a sense of great peace.”

Upon hearing this, all eyes shifted from Dumbledore to Harry and Harry once again felt like shrinking away from everyone. He had not felt like that since his days at Hogwarts. Dumbledore continued on reading, despite Harry’s obvious discomfort.

“This peace will come at a price, The Daughter of Darkness allowed too much power to be given to one side, thus creating a shift in the world's balance. This must be corrected, in order for the world to realign and restore its balance. Therefore, The Daughters of the Earth shall be replaced as it is written below,” Dumbledore then stopped and looked at Draco over his half-moon spectacles. “Are you ready to hear your prophecy, Draco?”

Draco again tensed up but nodded his head anyway. He had been searching for months to find out, he was not about to say no now. Dumbledore then returned his attention back to the documents.

“Born into the family of pure blood he will be, The Dragon will grow and change for him to see. Once known to be an enemy, in her he will find, Love, peace and happiness and together they will bind. A connection made to bring him his fate; the powerful Lion will be his soul mate. A new life with her he will help to make, a twin soul made for the Earth to take. Her blood that is not, though his will be pure; together they will mix to create the world’s cure. A girl to be protected until she is sixteen, to walk the path her soul has already been.”

Dumbledore looked up from the documents and allowed for this new piece of information to sink in. Draco sat with a shocked expression on his face though Dumbledore knew he could count on Hermione to be the one to process this information the quickest.

Hermione recited the prophecy repeatedly in her head. She should be shocked, but somehow, she was not. To her, it all made sense now, that bolt of energy she always felt when she was close to Draco, the feeling as if an invisible thread was winding its way around them when they kissed, it all fit. They were soul mates; an old tradition that was frowned upon, as more and more people forgot about destiny, and focused on free will.

“There is more,” Dumbledore cut the silence and all eyes were back on him. “What surprised me the most was the other prophecies I found written here. I triple checked this to make sure it was right, and to my dismay, it is indeed correct and true.”

“What other prophecies?” Hermione asked as she looked from Dumbledore to Draco and back again.

“I believe your prophecy is written here, as well as, Miss Weasley’s, Ron Weasley, and that of Draco’s first unborn child.” Dumbledore listed as he flipped through the documents.

Again, gasps and whispers could be heard around the room and this time Hermione sat shocked in her seat, unable to hide her surprise. However, Ginny interrupted with the important questions.

“Why are we written in there? We are not part of the Malfoy family.”

“Very good, Miss Weasley,” Dumbledore said with a smile. “I suspect your prophecies are written here as you are all linked to the one purpose. Your prophecy and Miss Grangers are very much similar to Draco’s. The only different ones are Ron’s and Draco’s first unborn child.”

“So what do they say?” Hermione finally found her voice to ask her question.

Dumbledore returned his attention to the documents once again. “I’ll start with yours Hermione,” Dumbledore cleared his throat and began to read aloud once again. “Born into the family of non-pure blood she will be, The Lion will grow and change for her to see. Once known to be an enemy, in him she will find, Love, peace and happiness and together they will bind. A connection made to bring her fate; the mighty Dragon will be her soul mate. A new life with him she will help to make, a twin soul made for the Earth to take. Her blood that is not, though his will be pure; together they will mix to create the world’s cure. A girl to be protected until she is sixteen, to walk the path her soul has already been.”

Hermione slumped back into her chair; her face paled as she registered the meaning of the prophecies. She only half heard Dumbledore continue as he read out Ginny’s prophecy next.

“Bound to the Saviour of Darkness, Her love for him she will confess. A temper so fiery with a will so strong, in her, he will never find anything wrong. A connection made to bring her fate; The Saviour of Darkness will be her soul mate. A new life with him she will help to make, a twin soul made for the Earth to take. Her blood that is Pure, though his will be half-pure; together they will mix to create the world’s cure. A girl to be protected until she is sixteen, to walk the path her soul has already been.”

Ginny and Harry sat in shock as they both understood what the prophecy told them. Hermione, however, saw the proud grin on Ron’s face, and she clicked. Ron knew about the prophecies. How or when he found out, she had no idea, but he knew.

“What of Ron’s prophecy?” Hermione asked though her attention was focused on Ron.

Dumbledore again cleared his throat as he read. “Protector of the twin souls he will be, Brother to the fiery one, for him to oversee. The Saviour of Darkness he befriends, the powerful Lion, is their friend. His sister and the powerful Lion he will defend, for their children the world needs to mend. Guardian to the Amulets of Dark and Light, to choose which path the twin souls will fight. Love and friendship he will need, to keep him close to do his deed. Once the twin souls have been unmasked, The Protector will be released from his task.”

Ron beamed with pride though his face had turned a deep shade of crimson, as everyone looked at Ron. Molly, and Arthur were the only other ones who were smiling in the room. Hermione finally made her eyes look away from Ron and stared at the table. A few tears had escaped her eyes as she listened and understood every word. Instinctively, her free hand came to rest on her stomach as she rubbed it lightly. If what she had heard was correct? Her first-born child would be taken from her. She shook her head in disbelief, only moments ago, and her life was finally on track, now she felt as if everything was spiralling down and crashing around her.

Draco was not aware of the tears that had filled his eyes until he looked back up at Dumbledore, and he felt a tear escape.

“My unborn child, what does it say about her?” he asked

For the last time, Dumbledore flicked through the documents and pulled one to the front of the pile. “Pure and non-pure blood that is mixed, A twin soul’s life is already fixed. The Dragon will love and teach you his ways; The Lion will love and guide you in many ways. The age of sixteen is when you will find, the power you possess and the other of your kind. To rule the Dark you may have to face, as the Serpent’s home is where you will be placed. Your twin soul may also own your power; Stay close to her for you may tend to cower. There is a vast difference in Love and Hate; therefore, the Protector will choose your fate.”

A deafening silence filled the room; all Hermione could hear was the sound of her pounding heart. _This is not happening; this is not happening!_ She repeated over in her mind. Draco too was in disbelief. The silence in the room was cut by the sound of a chair scraping across the floor. Ginny had been quietly sobbing, and Harry rose from his seat. He threw Dumbledore an angry look before he turned and walked over to the kitchen sink. He looked out of the window and into the night; he was used to prophecies. His whole life was based upon one, which he fulfilled. _So why this, why now?_ He thought.

Ginny had calmed herself down and wiped the tears away from her face. She looked at her old Headmaster dead in the eye as she spoke.

“What is written about my child?”

“There is nothing,” Dumbledore replied, and noticed Harry turn to face the room again. “Once Ron has decided the fate for Draco’s child, your child’s destiny will be defined. There is no need for your child to have a prophecy of her own.” The sadness in Dumbledore’s eyes could not be missed; it was a great shock for them to see him alive, let alone to be the one to deliver this news.

Ginny nodded, as she understood what Dumbledore had just told her, and a fresh load of tears fell down her cheeks. Harry moved to stand behind Ginny, and he bent down a little to hug her. He could feel the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes, but he pushed them back. He had endured worse news than this, so he would be strong for Ginny.

Hermione calmly rose from her seat; her chin pointed out stubbornly as she stood and looked at Dumbledore.

“I refuse to participate in this stupidity. I will not conceive a child to have her taken away from me. Choose someone else to burden this with.” She said then went to turn to walk away.

“Miss Granger, these prophecies have already been set in motion,” Dumbledore replied calmly. “You see, I could only return once a particular fertility plant had grown. The only way this plant could grow, is if you were to fall pregnant with Draco’s child, just as Ginny had to be pregnant with Harry’s.”

Hermione stood frozen as her arms circled around her stomach protectively. She slowly turned to face Dumbledore again, a look of shock mixed with surprised sat upon her face.

“How? I always used protection spells.” She questioned.

“No amount of magic can interfere with destiny, Miss Granger. Unlike Harry’s prophecy, these prophecies are pre-written. Things may go askew, as they have in this case, but these kinds of prophecies are always fulfilled. If you do try and stop it from happening…” Dumbledore trailed off as he had no idea how to lessen the severity of what he was about to say. He let out a sad sigh as he continued.

“You will end up putting your life, as well as those who are also involved, in jeopardy. If you do not fulfil the prophecy, you are replaced. Therefore, your lives will cease to exist while the fates decide who will replace you.”

“And just who are the ‘fates’ you refer to? Who decides all of this?” Hermione spat, as her anger rose.

“Even I’m not aware of that, I just know these things exist. I understand what you are going through, Miss - ” Hermione cut Dumbledore short.

“My name is _**Hermione**_ ,” she shouted, “and how could you know what we are going through. You put us through hell; we thought you were dead, and it took all our strength to carry on and help Harry. Then you miraculously reappear and dump all this stuff about prophecies on us and tell us that our first born children will be taken away from us by a ‘being’ that no one knows of, and you expect us to just be okay with it?...Because it is written? I _don’t_ think so.”

Sometime during Hermione’s rage, Dumbledore had risen from his seat, and he stood facing Hermione. Everyone else in the room was staring at her, shocked at the way she had spoken to Dumbledore. Hermione had always been the first one to trust Dumbledore’s word, but this time, she actually questioned it.

“Hermione, I know how you are feeling, as I have been there myself,” a gasp of shock erupted around him, but he ignored it and kept speaking to Hermione. “Twenty five years ago, my daughter was taken from me in much the same way. I never knew of such prophecies until the day she was taken from me. This is why I said in the beginning to Draco, that I have experienced this kind of prophecy before.”

“You…You have a daughter?” Hermione stumbled on her words as she tried to picture what Dumbledore’s daughter looked like.

“Yes. I had a daughter once. When she was taken to fulfil her destiny, she became immortal and exists on a different plane of existence. Much the same way your daughter will live when it is her time. All earthy reference to her existence is erased, and only very few people will remember who she was. It is done this way to protect what they do.”

Hermione stared at Dumbledore, still shocked by his confession, though he had managed to answer her next question as to why she had not heard or read about the child of Dumbledore. Hermione felt her head spinning once again and the nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach. She turned and bolted up the stairs, slamming the bathroom door behind her.


	31. Dealing With It

Hermione slowly roused from a deep sleep. She rubbed her eyes and blinked against the light peeking through the window and shining straight on her. She looked around and noticed Ginny sleeping soundly across the room, and then the memories of the night before came flooding back. She fought back the tears that welled up in her eyes and pulled herself out of bed.

She quietly slipped out of the room and headed for the bathroom to freshen up. After a hot shower and some time to think, she felt an awful dread set upon her. Never in a million years, did she ever think that she would be caught up in something so big. This was something she read about in books. With that thought, she smiled as memories of reading about Harry came to her mind. Is this how he felt, once he learned about his prophecy?

Shaking her head, she turned off the taps and reached out for her towel. Stepping out of the shower, she wrapped the towel around herself and went to head back to Ginny’s room. Just as she opened the door, Draco stood in front of her, and she let out a small scream.

“Well hello there,” Draco drawled with a grin upon his face.

“You scared me to death, you prat!” Hermione scolded, but couldn’t help notice that Draco seemed to be in a rather good mood despite the events of last night.

Draco wound his hands around Hermione’s waist and drew her in closer; he leaned down and trailed light kisses down her neck, before making his way back up and capturing her lips into a deep kiss.

Hermione was surprised by his actions at first, but once she felt his lips upon her neck, a small moan escaped her lips and left her feeling slightly dizzy. Draco broke their kiss first, but did not let her go.

“This is something I know I can definitely get used to,” he mused.

Hermione blushed but smiled up at him. “We’ve been living together for months Draco, this is nothing new.”

“Ah, this is very true. But, we will be husband and wife very soon, and that is something entirely different.” He stated.

“Really, how so?”

“Well, for one,” he said as he started to kiss Hermione’s neck again. “We’ll be able to do this more often in the privacy of our own home.”

Hermione gently pushed Draco away and studied his face. “Are you okay? We already have a home.”

Draco grinned at her and was about to say something, when they heard footsteps pounding down the stairs followed by muttered profanities.

“Oh, gross,” Ron groaned out his protests at the sight before him. “Find a room you two.” He said then headed down the last flight of stairs.

Draco laughed, and Hermione blushed as she tightly held onto her towel. Draco placed a soft kiss on her forehead and then let go of her.

“You had better get dressed before everyone else wakes up.”

Hermione nodded and slipped past Draco and back into Ginny’s room. Ginny was already awake and got ready for the day. Hermione noticed her happy demeanour and wondered why everyone seemed in a better mood this morning.

“Why are you so happy?” she asked as she found her wand and conjured up some new clothes to wear.

“Because it’s a beautiful day, I’m pregnant with a baby girl, and Harry and I are getting married just after the New Year.” Ginny replied.

“What?” Hermione gasped in shock, “When did you decide all of this?”

“Last night. After Albus and Remus left, Harry and I had a talk, and we decided to push the wedding forward. We want to be married before the baby is born.”

“So, you both don’t care that your child will be taken from you?”

Ginny sighed and sat down on her bed, her previous mood vanished as a sad look took over her face.

“We’ll have sixteen years with our daughter before the Prophecy takes place; I have no intentions of wasting any of those years being angry about it or fighting it. What has to be done, has to be done, Hermione, we can’t stop that.”

Hermione finished dressing and sat down on her bed, opposite Ginny. She looked up at her friend and broke down sobbing again.

“Oh, Ginny, how can all this happen to us? Haven’t we all been through enough? We were supposed to be enjoying our lives free of evil, and now we have to deal with all this prophecy stuff?” Hermione babbled on through her sobs, and she did not notice Ginny stand up and begin to pace the short length of her room.

When Hermione had finished her complaints, without warning, she felt a soft thump on the side of her head. Hermione gasped and looked up just as a pillow fell to the floor.

“You threw a pillow at me? Are you mental?” Hermione asked in shock.

“Yes Hermione, I _am_ mental, you are driving me completely insane,” Ginny yelled at the top of her lungs and her face burned red with fury. “For the last few months I’ve had to put up with your constant crying and listen to you complain about everything…” Ginny raged on.

~~*~~

Meanwhile, downstairs in the kitchen, those occupied all stopped what they were doing as they heard Ginny yell. Draco stood up from his seat, only to be pulled back down by Harry and Ron.

“Trust me mate, you don’t want to go there,” Ron said as he piled more food onto his plate.

“He’s right, let them be,” Harry said as he too piled up his plate.

Draco sat dumbfounded about how calm everyone was and went on with what they were doing as they listened to the arguing girls upstairs.

~~*~~

“We’re supposed to be happy, Hermione. I am supposed to be happy, I am with the man that I love; we are going to be married and have a child, what is so wrong with that? You are too; you’re getting married and about to start a family, so please tell me why you’re so damn sad this time?” Ginny finished ranting and flung another pillow at Hermione.

Hermione ducked to avoid the pillow that had flown her way. She stood up and faced her friend, anger simmering inside of her. As she looked at Ginny she felt her anger die out. Ginny’s face was flushed red; her hands were placed on her hips, a stern look covered her face. Suddenly Hermione burst out laughing.

“You…You threw a pillow at me…twice!” Hermione said around her laughter.

A smile crept up onto Ginny’s face and then she too began to laugh. “Well, you deserved it.” As the girls recovered from their laughter, Ginny rubbed her belly.

“Are you okay?” Hermione asked, suddenly concerned for Ginny.

“Oh, perfectly fine, I’m starving though.”

Hermione smiled and walked over to her friend; she hugged her briefly before linking her arm through one of Ginny’s and smiled.

“Let’s go eat then,”

Ginny smiled, “Yes, lets.” Then both girls made their way down to the kitchen.

~~*~~

As Hermione and Ginny joined the boys for breakfast, Hermione was surprised by the fact that Draco seemed rather comfortable and happy as he played Exploding Snap with Ron and Harry. She sat down in the chair beside Draco and screwed her nose up at the smell of the famous Weasley breakfast. She loved bacon and eggs, but now she realised that her pregnancy must have been putting her off it.

“Oh, here you go dear, this should help you with your morning sickness,” Molly said as she handed Hermione a glass.

The glass was filled with some sort of dark liquid that didn’t smell particularly good, but Hermione gulped it down anyway. She smiled up at Mrs Weasley as she handed the glass back.

“Thank you, I guess I’m going to have to get used to things like that,”

“Oh, don’t worry dear; it won’t be long before it goes away. This potion will help you along though. Now, go on and have some breakfast.” Molly urged Hermione, and to her great surprise, the smell of the food before her was rather delicious.

She piled some food onto her plate and watched the boys laugh and play. As she begun to eat, her thoughts drifted to earlier on that morning when Draco had talked about them being husband and wife very soon. She was confused by his words then as she was now with his current mood.

Although her spirits have risen, she was still quite concerned about the prophecies. As she finished the last of her food, she seemed more relaxed and returned her attention back to the boys. Draco had decided to pull out of the game and was laughing at Ron; he was losing and cursing about Draco cheating.

Harry continued with the game, which made Ron a little happier and Draco sat back in his chair and placed an arm around Hermione.

“Take a walk with me?” he whispered in her ear

Hermione nodded, and they excused themselves as they headed out into the gardens. The day was warming up rather well as the sun shined down on them both, making Hermione smile.

“I was thinking that we could spend some time at the cottage, to get away for a while, perhaps spend the New Year there,” Draco said as they walked.

Hermione stopped to look at Draco, he looked happier than he had ever looked before. His eyes shining brighter, and he was smiling a genuine smile, which sent shivers down Hermione’s back.

“That sounds like a fabulous idea,” she replied.

“I'm glad you think so. I have arranged for Harry, Ginny and Ron to stay with us, and the Weasley’s and your parents will stay at the Inn.”

“My parents? You spoke to my parents?” her shock not going unnoticed.

“Yes, I owled them early this morning; they are packing and leaving straight away,” Draco replied as if nothing was wrong and continued to walk ahead.

“Wait, Draco,” Hermione called after him, “Why did you owl my parents? I haven’t told them about you.”

“I know that, but they know about me now,” Draco grinned.

“But why?”

“I wanted to meet my future in-laws, and if I waited for you to tell them, I could be waiting a while.” Draco replied with a slight chuckle.

When Draco noticed that Hermione was still confused, he stepped up closer to her and tilted her chin up to face him.

“I have a surprise for you, but given what we discovered last night, I thought you might like the company of family and friends for a while. I have to go away for a few days; Dumbledore asked me last night if I could do something for him. So you’ll be leaving with the Weasley’s this afternoon, and I’ll be heading for the Ministry.”

“You’re going away? Where, why, is it about the prophecies because I -”

Draco cut Hermione off as he captured her lips in a kiss. He pulled away slightly, staring deep into her eyes.

“It’s a surprise, so I can’t tell you, but I promise you that everything is going to be okay.” He whispered.

Hermione nodded as she found herself lost in Draco’s eyes, and the kiss he gave her still left tingles running through her body. Draco smiled once again before claiming her lips. He wrapped his arms around her waist as their kiss deepened.

“Oh, great flying doxies, you two! Every time I turn around, I have to look at that,” Ron cursed as he approached them, and Draco and Hermione broke their kiss to look at Ron.

Ginny laughed as she and Harry followed Ron, they were all holding brooms, and Ginny threw one at Draco.

“Up for a friendly game of Quidditch before you leave? Fred and George are on their way with Bill and Charlie,” Ginny said as she beamed.

Draco looked at Hermione, and Hermione laughed. “Good luck, because you’re going to need it,” she said. It was her way of telling Draco that she didn’t mind.

Draco grinned; he kissed her quickly before he turned to Harry, “So Potter, who gets to be Seeker?”

“I do of course,” Harry said in surprise.

Hermione sat down on the grass and smiled as she watched Harry and Draco argue about who was the best Seeker. She shook her head as she saw Draco scowl. Did he honestly think he could win over Harry? She thought.

Soon enough, the game had started, and Hermione and Fleur were cheering for their teams. After watching Draco fumble with a bat, trying to beat a bludger that Fred had sent his way, she had to smile. A few years ago, the scene she was watching would never have happened. Now, as she gently rubbed her belly, she was thankful that the war had changed them all.


	32. Surprises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where I left this story. I really didn't know where else to go with it. A sequel called "Daughters of the Earth" was supposed to be written, but I lost track with fan fiction. I'll try and get it written, but dont hold me to that because my real life is crazy at the moment :) I hope you enjoy the last chapter of Hermione's journey.

Hermione twisted and turned in her bed; she could hear some birds singing outside her window and knew that the sun was up, but all she really wanted to do was sleep. The potion that Molly had given her had helped with her morning sickness, however, not having Draco beside her in bed at night made her brain tick over a thousand and one times. He hadn’t been in contact, and she had no idea where he was.

She kept wondering what his surprise was, and it irritated her to no end, to not know what he was up to. She gave in to the birds eventually and cursed them for being so happy as she struggled to get out of bed. She didn’t bother showering or dressing and made her way to the kitchen. Ginny, Harry and Ron were already outside eating breakfast when Hermione entered the kitchen. She gave a half-hearted wave with her hand as she passed the sliding doors, and headed straight for the kettle.

After making a hot cup of coffee, she headed outside and without a word, she sat down and sipped on her drink.

“Blimey, Hermione, you look dreadful,” Ron exclaimed.

Hermione gave him what she hoped to be a ‘death stare’ and continued to drink her coffee. Harry and Ginny were holding back their laughter and Ron looked at his sister and then at Harry.

“Well, she does,” He said in self-defence.

“Oh, Ron, you don’t always have to state the obvious. Haven’t you heard of using a bit of tact?” Ginny said to him and smiled as she saw her brother blush from embarrassment.

“Are you two finished?” Hermione asked irritably and slammed her cup of coffee down onto the table, spilling the contents as she did.

“Are you okay?” Harry asked his voice full of concern.

“Do I look okay to you?” Hermione began to shout, “I can’t sleep, Draco -” Her shouting ceased as she caught a glimpse of an owl flying towards them.

She held her breath and prayed it was the owl she was waiting for. Sure enough, the owl landed on the railing closest to where Hermione sat and held out its leg to her. She knew the owl must be from Draco and in her excitement; she almost ripped the owl’s leg off as she roughly yanked at the letter. Once the letter was free from the owl’s leg, she reached over, grabbed some bacon off Ron’s plate, and gave it to the owl. Hermione didn’t hear Ron’s cursing at losing a bit of food, as she was too busy opening the letter.

_Hermione,_

_I’m so sorry I have not written to you sooner; I have been much busier than I thought I would be. Everything has been sorted out now, and I will be arriving at the cottage around noon._

_Love,_

_Draco_

Hermione suddenly jumped up out of her chair, knocking over her coffee, which spilled onto Ron’s plate. Again, she was oblivious of Ron’s cursing as she rushed back inside the cottage and into her room. Ginny followed Hermione, laughing at Ron, who was still cursing about losing his breakfast. Ginny found Hermione rummaging through her clothes. She would find something she liked, hold it up against her, then shake her head, throw the article of clothing down on the bed, and them rummage around for the next piece.

“What are you doing?” Ginny inquired.

“What does it look like?” Hermione snapped back.

“What was in the letter?” Ginny pressed.

“Draco will be arriving this afternoon,” Hermione grunted, as she wasn’t happy with anything in her wardrobe. “Why do I have nothing to wear?”

Ginny laughed at her friend. “You’re acting as if you’ve only just met Draco,”

Hermione sighed and sat down on her bed, ignoring the piles of clothes underneath her. “I just feel like maybe he doesn’t really want this…I mean us, and the…” Hermione trailed off as she placed a hand on her belly.

“Don’t be silly. Draco loves you and is thrilled about the baby. You’re worrying about nothing.” Ginny tried to comfort her.

Hermione pondered on Ginny’s words for a moment, and then shook her head. “You're right, I am being silly. I just haven’t been able to sleep and not hearing from Draco all this time has driven me crazy.”

Ginny laughed again and sat down beside her on the bed, placing a comforting arm around Hermione’s shoulders. “Look, I know you’ve taken all this harder than the rest of us, but I promise you, everything is going to be fine.”

This time Hermione laughed and hugged Ginny. “You know, you’re going to be a fantastic mother,”

Ginny hugged Hermione back. “You will be too.”

~~*~~

Draco entered the cottage later that afternoon; the smell of barbequed meat was floating in the air, and he could hear laughter coming from the back. He placed is bags and his coat down and made his way outside. Seeing Hermione again after a few days apart sent his heart racing. She had her hair piled on top of her head; her blue singlet top clung to her like a second skin, and her light blue denim jeans just seemed to complete her look for the day. He stood by the sliding doors and watched the activity going on around him. His once empty and lonely existence was long forgotten. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Hermione stop what she was doing, then turn to face him.

Her smile seemed to brighten the day just that little more and Draco felt his heart skip a beat. Hermione ran excitedly up to him and jumped into his arms in a long embrace.

“I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered.

“I’ve missed you too,” he whispered back.

Hermione pulled slightly back from him; she stared into his cool blue eyes and felt that familiar jolt. Her lips found his and Hermione melted into him. Kissing Draco now, was like kissing him for the first time. All her nerve endings were set on fire, making her head feel light and airy.

Draco pulled out of the kiss first and smiled down at her. “Let’s eat, and then I’ll fill you in on where I have been.”

“Well, you can do that over lunch,” Hermione said excitedly.

Draco laughed. “And ruin my surprise for you? I think not,”

“It took you eight days to arrange my surprise? I thought Dumbledore asked you to do something for him?” she questioned him with a raised brow.

“He did, and it all has to do with your surprise, now let’s just eat,” Draco urged. Hermione was about to protest, when she heard the rest of the Weasley clan and her parents turn up.

A while later, Hermione tried to relax as she sat on one of the deck chairs; her mind was still working in overdrive as she tried to piece together the oddness around her. Ever since Draco returned, somehow the mood of everyone was much happier, and an odd kind of excitement filled the air. She vaguely remembered that, at one point, Draco and Ginny were huddled together with her parents, whispering about something. When Hermione had joined them, her parents quickly excused themselves as did Ginny. Draco shrugged off the incident then went in search of the Weasley twins, leaving Hermione alone.

As she watched Harry and Ron argue over a game of wizard’s chess, she couldn’t help but smile at how normal everything seemed. Ron was back, and everyone was happier knowing that his disappearance was for a greater cause. Bill and Fleur were still the happy newlyweds, always sneaking off to be alone.  Charlie sat talking to the twins, while Mr and Mrs Weasley, Ginny and her parents sat under a tree, talking and drinking tea. However, she couldn’t see Draco anywhere. She sat up straighter and looked around her again, but he still wasn’t in sight.

“Looking for something?” a voice whispered from behind her.

Hermione jumped and almost screamed as she turned her head to look behind her. “Damn it Draco, you scared the wits out of me,” She scolded as she placed a hand over her racing heart. “Where have you been?” Draco’s smirk returned to his face, and Hermione frowned at him. “What have you done?”

Draco simply held out his hand to her. “Come and see for yourself,”

Hermione took his hand and allowed him to help her stand. “Where are we going?”

“To show you your surprise,” he smirked again.

Hermione grinned, yet inside, she felt nervous. She had been wracking her brains out to guess what her surprise might be, but truthfully, she hadn’t figured Draco out like she had with Harry or Ron. She knew them like the palm of her hand, Draco; however, was still a puzzle to her.

Draco led her away from the garden and its occupants to a more secluded area. “We’re going to have to use side-along apparition, are you okay with that?” he asked once they had stopped walking.

Hermione looked at him in curiosity, but she nodded her head anyway. A loud crack echoed through the gardens, and everyone in the cottage garden looked up at each other in silence and smiled before returning to their conversations.

~~*~~

Before Hermione had time to blink, her surroundings took on a vast change. The cottage gardens had vanished and were replaced by a completely different garden. She had to blink a few times to grasp the change.

“Where are we?” she finally managed to ask.

“Look to your right?”

Hermione did as she was asked and gasped. Standing before her was the huge Malfoy Mansion. She had never seen it before, and she was amazed by its true size. There had to be at least a hundred rooms in the Mansion from what she could see; she was also surprised to see that the Mansion was all white on the outside. She had always imagined it to look dark and gloomy, but it was the exact opposite.

“This is truly amazing, Draco. But why are we here?” She asked as she turned to face Draco.

“This will be our new home,” he replied with a huge grin on his face.

“But…how? You signed this over to the Ministry,”

“Yes, Dumbledore saw to the necessary paper work. The mansion has been cleared of all Dark Arts material, and there was no need for the Ministry to hold onto the Malfoy property. All estates have been handed back to me, therefore to you too, as you will be the next Mrs Malfoy,”

Hermione stared at Draco in disbelief, and then looked back at the mansion. For some reason, she felt rather uncomfortable with the idea of living in a place where Dark Magic was once used.

“But we already have a home,” Hermione whispered.

“I thought that the house would be best suited for Harry and Ginny, as a wedding gift. I still have the cottage and a few other properties that were cleared through the Ministry. I see no reason to stay in that small house, when we have this,” Draco pointed at the mansion.

Hermione remained silent as she stared at the Manor. She still didn’t feel right about it, but Draco seemed so happy and excited and she didn’t want to let him down. She felt Draco take her hand and begin to lead her through the gardens and into the mansion. Draco gave her a quick tour, pointing out rooms and places where he used to hide when he was younger. All Hermione could do was to nod her head and stare at her surroundings.

The Malfoy Manor really was amazing, from the marbled floor to the double grand staircase. Each room was huge and filled with antique furniture; the kitchen alone was the size of two rooms. Draco then led her up a flight of stairs, taking her to the first floor.

“There are five floors in total, including the ground floor. Up here are all the main bedrooms and this one…” Draco kept speaking as he led her through the hall; then he stopped in front of a door and opened it. “This will be our room,”

Hermione stepped inside the massive room and gasped. Inside the room was a huge, solid oak, canopy bed, with matching side tables, wardrobes and tallboys. A huge mirror dominated the right wall and Hermione moved to stand in front of it.

“Slide it to the left,” Draco said as he also entered the room and sat down at the foot of the bed.

Hermione looked at him through the mirror then slid it across to the left. Behind the mirror was a huge walk in wardrobe. As she kept walking through, there was a door at the end; she opened the door to reveal a huge bathroom. There was a double spa bath, a shower, a his and her sink and bench space, and a toilet. The floor was made of the same marble that graced the ground floor entry. She turned back and headed towards Draco.

“Was this once your parent’s room?” She asked.

Draco smiled at her but shook his head. “No, my parent’s room is at the end of the hall,” he pointed to the left of him. “This was a guest room, but I set it up for us.”

“Oh,” Hermione said and looked around the room once again.

“So, do you like it?” Draco asked her as he watched her. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking or feeling.

“I…I’m not sure,” Hermione then turned to look at Draco once again. “How much Dark Magic actually went on in this house?”

Draco threw his head back and laughed, which took Hermione by surprise. “I’m sorry,” Draco said once his laughter subsided. He got up from off the bed and walked over to where Hermione stood then wrapped his arms around her. “Nothing really ever took place here. My father had many items and books of Dark Arts material, but no actual spell work ever took place in the Malfoy home,”

Hermione sighed in relief, wrapped her arms around Draco’s neck, and pulled him down in an embrace. “Then I’m more than happy to live here with you,” she whispered.

Draco smiled and placed a soft kiss on top of Hermione’s head and hugged her back. They stood that way for a while, both enjoying the comfort of each other before Draco pulled slightly away from Hermione.

“I have another surprise,” he smiled. “Its upstairs, so come with me,” he then led Hermione out of the room, back into the hall and up another flight of stairs.

“This floor contains our own infirmary, the library, and a very special room,” Draco pointed out each door as he listed off the three rooms on this floor. Hermione’s face lit up as Draco mentioned the library; however, Draco was taking her to ‘the special room’.

The stood outside of door number three, and Draco turned to face Hermione. “Do you remember The Room of Requirement at Hogwarts?”

“Of course I do,” Hermione replied. How could she forget with the amount of times that Harry, Ron and she had snuck into the room?

“Well, this room works off the same principal. Draco then opened the door, and Hermione peeked inside.

“It’s a huge empty room,” Hermione said and looked at Draco in confusion.

Draco smiled. “It is at the moment,” he then closed the door and stood back. “Stand in front of the door, close your eyes and visualise what you would like to be in the room. Do you need a new book, new clothes, pick out a wedding dress maybe?” Draco smirked, and Hermione rolled her eyes. “All you really have to do is think of what you need and it will appear in the room. If you wish to purchase anything, visualise the shop you can buy it in, and its entire contents will be in this room. Anything you take will automatically be placed on our account with that shop. If we don’t have an account, one will be created, and we pay our bills monthly by owl. So, go ahead and try it.” Draco finished, and Hermione felt a little nervous, yet excited at the same time. This gave a completely new meaning to ‘home shopping’.

Hermione stood directly in front of the door, took a deep breath and thought of what she really needed right now. She opened her eyes, and placed her hand on the door handle and opened the door. Hermione gasped as she looked at all the rows of books and stationary that now filled the room. She walked inside and began to browse through all of the items. Draco followed her in with a huge grin on his face; he watched her duck and weave her way around, picking out the items she wanted then head back towards the door.

“So, what did you find?” Draco asked her once he caught up to her.

“Wedding invitations,” Hermione held out her hands and Draco laughed. “I thought that we might be able to have a double wedding, with Ginny and Harry. That way we don’t have to invite every one to two separate events. Well, I have to speak to Harry and Ginny first, but I’m sure they wouldn’t mind,”

“And what if I mind?” Draco asked with a raised brow.

“Tough. Either marry me at a double wedding or not at all. I can put these back if you like,” Hermione teased, though she did make a move to head back into the rows of books.

“Oh, no you don’t,” Draco grabbed her and pulled her to him. “I’m marrying you,” he smiled just before his lips met hers once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all that have followed me with this story as it was posted. I really appreciate the fact that you have enjoyed each chapter as they came along. Thank you to ALL of you who have read and liked this story. It really is my most favourite of all the stories I have written :)


End file.
